Rough Ryder
by JojoDayDreamin
Summary: -My First Fanfic! - Ryder Dubois, goes from being a regular party girl, to a 3rd Street Saint in the blink of an eye. The story starts all the way back in Saints Row 1 and will work up to Saints Row The Third in sequels. RyderxDex
1. Just Want My High,My Patron,& a Mulatto

**_This is my first FanFic so bear with me :P Sorry if the first chapter is too long, I wanted to be as thorough as possible. Please leave feedback, critique is greatly appreciated! _**

**Disclaimer:_ I claim ownership to nothing other than my created characters, plot, and situations.__  
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**Chapter 1: ****Just Want My High, My Patron, and a Mulatto**

Ryder kicked gingerly at the gravel beneath her teal converse sneakers as she watched cars steadily flow through the street outside of the apartment complex where she and her sister, Robyn, lived. Ryder snickered to herself as she witnessed an elderly woman roll down her window and curse at a student driver who had just cut her off in the drive-thru line at the Freckle Bitches across the street. Observing the everyday behaviors of the inhabitants of Stillwater seemed to be the only thing Ryder could do to entertain herself. As upsetting as this reality was to her, it got even worse when she reminded herself that she had just turned 18 the night before and she was stuck sitting on a step, kicking rocks.

"What a fucking party..," Ryder mumbled to herself, still toying with the rubble under her feet.

Ryder had initially planned to go to _On Track_ with some friends, get higher than a NASA shuttle on route to Mars, pass out, get carried home by some sexy mulatto, and be too brain dead in the morning to tell the tale.. Surely it's not the most elaborate birthday bash but that was all she wanted to celebrate her coming of age. At the time of planning, she wouldn't have even considered anything less, she wanted her high, her drunken collapse, and her mulatto fantasy - in that order, no bullshit. Straight Kush, strong 'tron, super sexy mulatto man! Not caramel, not chocolate mixed with a little albino - "Fuck that," she snuffed, "I want my Mulatto, baby!".

But now, all Ryder Dubois really wanted to do was get off this step and go shake her cute little ass on a dance floor, she didn't care where. With her mind thoroughly made up, Ryder rose from the step, dusted off her shorts and went inside of the apartment building.

"Good afternoon sweetheart," an elderly woman with a strong Spanish accent quipped as Ryder strolled up a third flight of stairs.

"Miss Lisa, hey there!" Ryder beamed. She always welcomed seeing her childhood babysitter stop by for a visit. Although seeing the little Hispanic woman carting down the stairs piqued her curiosity. "What brings you by our neck of the woods?" Ryder joked.

"Just came to see on my son.. You know Carlos, si?," The elderly woman asked, unsure.

"Of course I know Carlos, Miss Lisa!," Ryder gasped, "We grew up together, and he _definitely_ lives across the hall from me," Ryder mused as she leaned back against the mahogany stair banister. Carlos was one of her best friends since they met up in eighth grade. He was a little taller than Ryder, which wasn't saying much, seeing as how Ryder was only about 5'4. He always donned a green Stillwater University beanie, and whatever track pants he hadn't worn lately. He had soft facial features, and a fit body build, but the thing that made Ryder sit next to him on their eighth grade trip to the Grand Canyon was his adorable, puppy like, big brown eyes. Ryder insisted that his eyes had always made him _so_ cute, but she'd never tell him that, "Might give 'em a big head," she always told herself.

Ryder had nearly forgotten that she was chatting with Carlos' mother when the old woman snapped her back into reality, "Oh my, my memory is slipping away from me child," Miss Lisa chuckled. "I should be going chica, though I will stop by again soon," Miss Lisa said warmly as she shifted her rolling bag to continue down the stairs.

"Okay then Miss Lisa," Ryder began as she watched the old woman advancing down the steps, "But you know Tony is here too, did you stop by to see him?," Ryder quipped. Miss Lisa seemingly froze at the mention of her elder son.

"I do not wish to speak of Anthonio, ever since he joined that damned gang," Miss Lisa cursed, "surely you understand my dear,".

"Mm," Ryder nodded in understanding as she gave Miss Lisa a warm smile and ascended up the stairs. "I wish I was with the Saints or something," Ryder mumbled under her breath as she crossed the third floor searching for her apartment, "Would be a helluva lot better time than waiting for your car to get out of the shop,".

Lost in thought, Ryder absently wandered around the third floor of the complex.

"Oh good Lord help me!," Ryder exclaimed as she collapsed dramatically onto the third floor lobby, "What is my damned apartment number!," Ryder was splayed out on the floor in fabricated anguish as she let her hazel brown eyes cast their gaze towards the cute assistance clerk, begging for his help.

"Its apartment 28, Miss Dubois," the clerk sighed.

Quickly recovering from her "agony", Ryder scrambled to her feet and began walking towards her apartment door, "Thanks hun!," she called over her shoulder as she rounded a corner.

"You do this everyday Miss Dubois!" The clerk called after her, clearly annoyed.

Ryder smiled to herself as she sauntered over to the apartment door that had two R's on it, encrusted in rhinestones. "Oh yeah he wants me," Ryder snickered to herself as she pulled out her key and unlocked the door.

"Hey, hey, hey!," Ryder chimed as she entered the brightly painted apartment.

"Hey Ry Ry!," her elder sister, Robyn beamed.

"Sup," Carlos managed to say as he was munching on some chips.

Ryder peered over the couch with it's back towards her to see a green beanie staring back up at her. Carlos felt her looking at his head and slowly lifted his chin to meet her upside down gaze, he grinned as he realized that Ryder had shifted her gaze to the bag of chips in his hands, he offered the bag up to her while fishing something out of his teeth with his tongue.

"Yay! Thank you!," Ryder exclaimed as she dug her hand into the bag and drew out a handful of chips. "You know, I just saw your mom on my way up," Ryder stated as she picked a chip out of her palm and slid her tongue out to receive it, unaware of the sultry seductiveness she gave off in that one action.

Carlos noticed it and watched her carefully as he responded, "Yeah, she was just up here," he paused for a minute while repositioning himself on the couch, "she asked about you and wanted to know how Anthonio was doing.. You know she refuses to face him," he stated, glancing up at Ryder to see she had finished a majority of the chips in her hand.

"I don't see why," Ryder began as she sucked the tips of her fingers, "the Saints are hot, and Tony is still the same as he's ever been,".

"Mhmm," Robyn cosigned as she skimmed through a fashion magazine.

Carlos shrugged,"You know how she is, old fashioned and self righteous,".

Ryder nodded slowly before smacking her lips one quick time, "Well enough of this talk," Ryder whipped her hands on her shorts and headed down the short hall to her room, "we're gonna party tonight!," she chimed over her shoulder.

"Woohoo!," Robyn exclaimed as she flopped her magazine on the coffee table and headed for the bathroom.

"Oh hell yeah!," Carlos cosigned as he pulled out his cell phone and headed for the door, "Im gonna call up some friends and be back later," he called down the hall before he walked out of the apartment.

Ryder was standing in her room, staring into a full length mirror admiring the third dress she had tried on that night. It was a tight royal blue dress that stopped just at her mid thigh region, and hugged her curves graciously. The dress had long sleeves, but the back was dipped down to the curve of her back. Ryder was a mix of African American, Native Indian, and just a small bit of Latina flavor. Her heritage shows through her physical features flawlessly; her curves resembled those of a voluptuous video vixen, her skin was a gentle tan brown, her chestnut, auburn streaked hair was of a silky texture and stopped just a little below her shoulders. Her eyes were hazel brown, but tended to transition to a dark green depending on how much light they are exposed to.

Ryder twirled in the mirror, checking her frame from all sides until she had decided that she was going to stick with that dress. Ryder had put her up in a cheerleader-like bouncy ponytail, with a hump at the forefront. Her eyeliner resembled the style of an Egyptian's and she had a dark blue smokey eye look that was lightly embellished with glitter. Ryder topped off the look by putting on her favorite pair of stilettos and some silver hoops that had three aligned sparkling balls on their bottom curve. Ryder wasn't a fan of lip wear but she decided to put on some soft gloss, just so she was glimmering all over.

Happy with her look, Ryder headed out into the living room of the apartment to be greeted by Robyn, Carlos, and Anthonio.

"Well, how do I look?," Ryder asked eagerly.

"Sexy!," Exclaimed Robyn.

"Woah..," Carlos gasped dryly.

Anthonio simply cocked an eyebrow, raised his purple Saints cap a little above his eye, and let his eyes slowly roam over Ryder from head to toe.

"Well, Tony?," Ryder urged, disrupting Anthonio's "concentration".

With his hand still gently tugging his hat from side to side he purred, "_Muy joder caliente mami,". (Very fucking hot mami)_

Ryder gushed a little bit and strolled over to the counter to get her phone. She scrolled through her new text messages and proclaimed, "Okay, the others are going to meet us at _On Track_, so lets get the hell out of here!,"

"So, anybody driving or what?," Robyn asked as she locked the door to the apartment.

"I figured we would take a cab, seeing as how I can already see myself passing out at the bar - I'm not getting behind the wheel of a damn thing," Ryder responded jokingly.

"Noted," Carlos grinned, as he waved down a cab.

It was about 10:30 pm by the time they arrived at the club, and the party was in full swing. Ryder spotted some of their other friends laced within the crowd and around the bar, the gang wasted no time splitting up and getting into the mix. Ryder headed straight for the bar, with Robyn in tow.

"Two shots - Patron, laced with your strongest tequila, and if you want to be cute - go ahead and put some sugar on the rim," Ryder ordered swiftly.

The bartender donned a curt grin and served up the shots, making sure to be extra cute, lacing the rim of the glasses with sugar.

Ryder and Robyn laced their arms together and went shot after shot until Robyn felt the urgent need to dance. Robyn took one last shot, grabbed Ryder's wrist and headed out onto the dance floor. Carlos and Anthonio had just gotten off the dance floor and were chatting with two girls, one blonde and one brunette, in a booth on the upper level overlooking the dance floor. The music in the club was loud, and made the walls tremble. Ryder loved it. Ryder and Robyn made their way to the center of the dance floor and began to sway in time with the hypnotic beats.

Ryder let her hips gain a mind of their own as she moved to the rhythm of the steady baseline. Lost is a semi-trance-like state, Ryder almost didn't notice a pair of strong hands gently grab hold of her waist line. Ryder snapped back into reality and snaked out of the stranger's grasp as she turned to face her pursuer and it damn sure wasn't her mulatto that she had been dreaming of. Her new friend was decked out in a blue basketball jersey atop a plain white t-shirt, he also wore a blue headband, some jeans, and a pair of blue sneakers.

"You've gotta be kidding me," Ryder mumbled under her breath as she took in his attire, "a fucking Roller,". Ryder backed away cautiously as she gingerly nudged Robyn in the arm, signaling that she wanted to leave.

"Oh come on baby, I'm just tryna' get to know you, is all," The Roller beckoned, a cocky grin spreading across his face.

"Fuck off pendejo," Robyn hissed and she assisted Ryder who was stumbling over the floor tiles, trying to walk backwards.

The insistent Roller pressed forward onto Ryder, roughly pushing her past her sister's grasp and thrusting his presence onto her. Little did he know, that Ryder was more than just a pretty face, although intoxicated, Ryder still managed to knee her oppressor hard in the groin, and push him back with a forceful kick in the gut. The Roller hunched over his stomach in pain, as he signaled his fellow Rollers scattered around the club to aid him.

Robyn rushed to her sister's side as Ryder stumbled over a bar stool, "Fuck..," Ryder mumbled, "Sis... Get Tony's ass over here,".

"Tony!," Robyn yelled urgently, "Tony, Carlos, where the fuck are you?," Robyn damn near screamed for their male counterparts.

Having heard his name being called, Anthonio casually glanced over in Robyn and Ryder's location. His calm demeanor immediately changed as he followed Ryder's glare across the club, three West Side Rollerz were on route towards her and Robyn.

"Oh _SHIT!,_" Anthonio exclaimed as he pushed his brunette girl out of the booth and grabbed Carlos, "Fucking Rollerz are going after the girls!,"

Carlos wasn't a banger like his brother, and he may have been smaller, but he knew damn well how to protect himself and the people he cared for. Carlos and Anthonio advanced quickly to aid the girls, but by the time they got there the Rollerz were too.

Anthonio quickly reached into his inner coat pocket and pulled out his pistol by the barrel and bashed the leading Roller in the side of the head, and tackled his onto the ground. "Get the fuck outta' here!," Tony yelled over his shoulder to the girls. They complied quickly and maneuvered around the screaming crowd to get to the exit.

Carlos glanced over to the exit to see the girls exiting, a wave of relief passed through him, but was quickly replaced by a wave of pain as he had just received a jab in his jaw from one of the other Rollerz. Carlos stumbled back, clutching his jaw, but recovering quickly, he grabbed a bar stool by the leg and swung it into the Roller. It was an all out brawl in the night club, and it wasn't long before the police showed up on the scene. Luckily for them, the girls were no where in sight.

Arm in arm, Ryder and Robyn stumbled over concrete, walking along the streets of Stillwater at around two in the morning, trying to find their way home. "Fuck!," Ryder slurred as they passed a bootlegger selling watches near a corner store, "I broke my fucking heel, my favorite fucking heel!," Ryder whined as she rested her head on her elder sister's shoulder.

"You'll live," Robyn murmured. Robyn slowly looked up from the ground as she tried to fix her blurry vision on the yellow-ish figures ahead.

Robyn couldn't tell, but the figures she saw were a trio of Vice Kings, observing some graffiti on the wall, done by the Rollerz. Although she didn't know this, Robyn thought it would be a safe bet to stop walking and wait until the yellow-ish figures walked away.

"Uh-oh, looks like tw-troubuul!," Ryder chuckled in a drunken slur as, what she perceived to be, blue-ish figures approach the yellows. Little did she know how much of an understatement that was.

Robyn grabbed Ryder's arm tighter and began to walk briskly, in hopes of getting out the area before anything bad happened.

"Ouuuchh, sissy... Stop.. That hurts," Ryder protested as she staggered along Robyn.

Robyn ignored her drunken protest, and attempted to press on, but before she could make any headway, yet another brawl was undergoing. The Rollerz and Vice Kings were at each others' throats; baseball bats, fists, and spray paint cans were being utilized to the most violent extent. All of a sudden, a red Stiletto convertible pulled up along side the bangers, and bullets sprayed everywhere.

Ryder snapped out of her drunker slur, and tried to stumble into cover, when she was securely behind a dumpster, she looked to her side and was in complete horror to see that he sister was not by her side. Robyn was paralyzed with fear and could do nothing more but cradle on the pavement. Bullets were still flying when Ryder scrambled from her hiding place on all fours, and tried to crawl over to her sister.

Ryder hoisted Robyn off the ground by her armpits, "Come.. On.. Robyn!," Ryder grunted as she dragged her shocked sibling to safety. Apparently the gang bangers were too consumed in their firefight to notice two drunk girls tripping over each other alongside their battleground. Tires screeched off in the distance as Ryder carefully placed Robyn's head on her lap. Ryder hadn't looked up, but assumed the fight was over until a dark shadow appeared over her.

Cautiously, Ryder looked up to see a Vice King standing over her,aiming a pistol at her forehead,"Wrong time, wrong place, baby girl," the banger snuffed as a shot went off.

Ryder whimpered quietly, as she slowly opened her eyes to see that she and her sister where still alive, but the Vice King lay dead at her feet. Robyn's eyes were open as well, and she managed to sit up along side of Ryder. Just then, a considerably older man in a purple shirt, black leather jacket, and matching leather golf hat approached them.

"You girls okay?," The man asked as he helped the girls to their feet. Ryder nodded her head solemnly, while Robyn sobbed uncontrollably.

"Julius, let's move," A man whom Ryder had not even noticed, urged on.

Julius hoisted both girls up, guiding them both towards a nearby wall, he had them both gently by the waistline. Ryder faintly limped as she allowed him to guide her. Julius, quickly yet gently, set them down by the wall and examined their wounds. Ryder's left knee was slightly scrapped from crawling on the ground, and her ankle was marginally swollen just from doing so much in her heels. Robyn however, was more mentally scarred than physically, she had little to no physical damage, but she was still weeping to an uncontrollable extent.

"That doesn't look so bad," Julius started, examining Ryder's leg, "you should be fine," he concluded. Ryder nodded her thanks and turned to Robyn who had brought her knees up to her chest and buried her head in her knees.

"She's just a little shook up..," Julius observed. "That's Troy," Julius said as he jutted his chin back towards the Caucasian man at his side, "You can thank him later," he reassured.

"Hey," Troy quipped towards the girls.

"Sup," Ryder greeted him quietly, offering him a slight grin.

Julius turned his attention back to Ryder and Robyn, but mainly Ryder since Robyn was clearly unfit to converse at this point in time. "This part of town ain't safe no more girls. We got gangs fightin' over shit that ain't even theirs, and you in they way. They don't care if you flyin' flags or not." Julius took a short pause.

"Julius, this is no time to recruit...," Troy started.

"We need all the help we can get son," Julius interjected.

"No, we need to get our asses outta here," Troy protested.

"In a minute," Julius barked as he turned back to the girls, "Look, the Row's got a problem. Come to the church tomorrow mornin' if you wanna be apart of the solution," Julius stated bluntly as he rose to his feet and headed for the two purple vehicles parked nearby.

"I'm heading to the church," Julius called over his shoulder to Troy, "you make sure those girls get home safe,".

"Right," Troy nodded curtly towards Julius, and helped the girls into his car.

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**_Well, there's my first chapter! Again, sorry if it's too long, I tried really hard to make it perfect :P I know my punctuation and grammatical errors may be numerous, but hey.. I'm still in school. ;) Working on the second chapter, hopefully it'll be up by next weekend._**

**_Please leave feedback!  
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	2. A Savior Named, Saint

**_Okay, chapter 2 is here! Sorry for the wait, I would've had it up sooner but this week I'm especially loaded with school work. Anyway, here's the chapter and I hope you enjoy it!_**

**Disclaimer:_ I claim ownership to nothing other than my created characters, plot, and situations._**

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**Chapter 2: A Savior Named, Saint**

The ride back to the apartment was quiet apart from the occasional sniffing noises Robyn was making. Ryder silently gazed out of the backseat window towards the passing street lights. Every once in awhile she would glanced towards the driver's seat and survey their driver, their savior rather, Troy. Ryder had been sitting in the seat behind the passenger's side, so she had a clear view of the side of his face.

Ryder hadn't noticed it before, be it because she had just been held at gunpoint or maybe because her life had just flashed before her eyes, but Troy was pretty cute. Ryder cocked her head to the side slightly as she admired his smooth skin complexion under the passing orange lights. His hair was dirty blonde, maybe even brown, it was hard to tell in the dark. Ryder knew for a fact though, that he had a mustache and a neatly trimmed, small goatee thing going on his chin. Yeah, he was pretty cute, but a cute guy was the last thing that preoccupied Ryder's mind right now. She had absolutely no idea what had happened to Carlos and Tony, but she figured that as long as they were together, then they'd both be okay. Aside from that, Ryder had never seen Robyn lose her composure so quickly. Of course Ryder had been just as terrified during the events that had just occurred, but Robyn was always the level-headed one, she should have been hauling Ryder to safety - not the other way around.

Ryder's train of thought was redirected to the ride home when the car came to a stop outside of the apartment complex.

"This is the place, right?," Troy asked, as he turned his head back towards Ryder.

"Yeah," Ryder sighed, tugging the bottom of her dress in preparation to exit the vehicle. It wouldn't help anybody right now for Ryder to get out of the car, and flash her cat at someone who may have been loitering nearby. Ryder smiled to herself at the thought, she didn't feel much like laughing, however.

Robyn slowly opened her door and arduously made her way to the apartment entrance. Ryder opened her door to follow suit, but turned back towards Troy and gazed at him with a distant look in her eyes, she was searching for a way to thank him properly.

Troy noticed her prolonged staring at him, which made him a bit uncomfortable. Ryder picked up on his uneasiness and quickly apologized, "Oh sorry if I'm making you feel weird!," Ryder quipped, "I'm just... ," Ryder started.

"No, no, it's cool, I understand," Troy interrupted gently, offering Ryder a gentle smile.

Ryder relaxed a little at his reassurance,"Thanks," Ryder breathed, "for everything... I mean it,".

Troy grinned solemnly and smoothed the edges of his beard with his hand, "You don't need to thank me -," he started.

"Yes I do," Ryder interjected, "you totally saved our asses back there," Ryder only half joked, smiling slightly.

"I guess I did, didn't I?," Troy said, mockingly admiring his accomplishment.

Ryder chuckled to herself as she stepped out of the car, just as she was closing the door, Troy called out to her, "Hey, don't forget to come by the church tomorrow, we could really use your help," Troy paused for a moment and collected his thoughts, "you're a strong girl,".

Ryder grinned, "I'll stop by and check it out - it's the least I could do,". With that Ryder closed the back door of the car and headed up the steps to the main entrance. As she opened the door, she turned to see Troy pulling off slightly and sent him off with a slight wave. He smirked and offered her a slight forward wave of his index and middle finger and drove off into the city.

By the time Ryder had gotten up to the door of their apartment, she saw that the door was slightly cracked open and she heard the door to Robyn's room close. Ryder silently slipped inside and locked the door. Unaware of the time, she casually glanced over at the clock above the stove. It read 2:34 AM. They weren't out nearly as long as she'd thought. Unwilling to do anything else, she headed to the bathroom to remove her smeared makeup, changed into some shorts and a tank top, and crawled into bed. She had never predicted that falling asleep would be easy, but she hadn't even imagined that she would be, uncomfortably, switching positions in bed until 4:00 AM before she had finally met the sand man.

Bright sun rays awoke Ryder early, well later, that morning. Ryder groaned at the amount of sun that was unnecessarily pouring into her room as she casually rolled onto her back and splayed out across the bed. Yawning slightly, she glanced at the clock.

"Since when do I wake up at 11 AM?," Ryder groaned as she literally rolled out of bed and toppled to the floor beneath her. The fall wouldn't've been so bad if her floor didn't have a variant of shoes and bags spread throughout it. Ryder muttered something incomprehensible under her breath about getting a maid while she scrambled to her feet. She figured that she'd freshen up and head down to the church, like she'd promised Troy.

Ryder gathered up a change of clothing and drug her feet across the hall to the bathroom. Turning the shower on full blast, she carelessly tossed her clothes to the side and hopped into the shower, damn near slipping on the way in.

_Note to self- Do NOT literally jump into the shower! _Ryder thought to herself. _Just because some lanky woman did it on a soap commercial, DOES NOT imply that you can do the same thing Ry Ry! Hello! - Get it together!_ Ryder lectured herself internally as she lathered her body in the steaming water.

Ryder let her train of thought drift, as she lowered her head and inhaled deeply. Hot showers were one of her outlets, she found it easy to let the steam clean out her pores and let the water wash away her stress. Suddenly, Ryder coughed alarmingly, ripping her away from her thoughts. She cleared her throat as she had realized that she forgot to exhale after her drawn out inhaling.

_Now I'm forgetting how to breathe! _Ryder exclaimed within herself. _Okay, that's obviously a sign that I need some serious help in the mental department._ Ryder shook her head in disbelief of her own detached tendencies. Of course she made a note to herself to insure that she would not forget how to breathe very often.

Soon, Ryder stepped out of the shower and dried off. She slipped on her underwear and reached down to grab her clothes. She wore a black tank top that revealed a little of her cleavage, Ryder was a nice size C-Cup, so she never really showed too much, or too little. She then slipped on some purple leggings, and some gray-ish ripped skinny jeans over them. Finally, she shoved her feet into some black, purple laced combat boots and plucked some silver studs in her ears.

"Wanna' roll with the Saints, gotta' dress like a Saint," Ryder mused to herself as she toyed with her hair in the mirror. "I _really_ don't feel like dealing with this right now," Ryder sighed as she examined the texture of her hair. After her shower her hair had become crimply, and she really didn't have the patience to straighten it.

"Okay, I got it," Ryder mumbled to herself. Deciding how she wanted it, she simply flipped her hair over to the right side of her head and sprayed it so it was stay there. A crimped bang hung carelessly over her right eye, and she loved it. "That's hot," Ryder mused to herself, feeling accomplished as she tossed her dirty clothes in the hamper and walked out of the bathroom.

Before heading out to the church, Ryder popped her head into Robyn's room to tell her where she was going. Robyn was still in bed, under her covers. She was turned from the door, but Ryder could tell that she was awake.

"How you feelin'?," Ryder asked quietly as she crossed into Robyn's room and sat on the edge of her bed. Robyn simply shrugged and turned over to face Ryder. Her eyes were slightly puffy from crying all night, but she offered Ryder a slight smile.

Ryder snickered and playfully poked her sister's cheek,"Well, I'm about to head out to the church, you going to be alright?," Ryder asked as she rose from the bed.

"Ohh, is that cutie from last night going to be there?," Robyn asked softly, her interest obviously piqued now. Ryder smiled widely and nodded. "Woah, have fun girl," Robyn teased as she stretched over her bed, "and be careful..," she added, "seriously,".

"I'll be safe," Ryder reassured as she left her sister's room.

"You look cute!," Robyn called after her, just as Ryder was shutting her door.

"Thanks sis!," Ryder bellowed back as she grabbed her phone off the kitchen counter and headed out of the apartment.

It wasn't long before Ryder was outside, walking along the pavement. There were a lot of people out today. _That's refreshing_, Ryder thought as she observed a young couple holding hands as they roller bladed down the sidewalk perpendicular to the one Ryder was on. _When's the best time to skate outside? During a goddamned gang war, that's when._ Ryder mocked them as she advanced up the block. The church was at least six blocks away from Ryder's apartment, so she didn't mind the walk. She did wish her car wasn't held up in the impound garage at the mall. _Stupid mall cops, and their stupid ticket book_. Ryder joked to herself as she crossed an intersection.

Just as she was making her was down a desolate sidewalk, Ryder heard the hum of a car, and turned to see that a purple drop-top convertible had pulled up behind her. The horn honked quickly, two times, and the driver gestured her to come over. Ryder didn't recognize the driver, however. He was brown skinned, about a shade or so darker than her. He sported a sideways purple visor that emphasized his eccentrically arrayed hairstyle. He also donned a single gold hoop earring in his right ear. He had on a jean jacket, on top of a purple shirt with a bold black stripe across the torso. Ryder couldn't make out his bottom wear from her position but she didn't care much, she'd already liked what she saw.

Ryder slowly swayed over to the driver's side, and immediately turned her gaze to the passenger's seat which was occupied by a person she recognized immediately - Troy.

A smile gradually spread over Ryder's face as she greeted Troy, "Oh hey!,".

"Sup," Troy responded with his elbow resting on the passenger side door, "Hop in, we're going to the church," Troy offered jutting his head back towards the empty back seat.

"Oh okay, cool," Ryder chimed as she hopped over the convertible door and plopped down in the backseat.

"Nice moves," The driver grinned as he gently pressed on the gas and advanced up the street.

"Who you tellin'," Ryder scooted to the middle of the seat, "I didn't even know I could do that,", she scuffed as she leaned forward and placed one elbow on the driver's seat, and one on the passenger's.

"That's Dex," Troy mentioned, motioning to the driver.

_Hmm... "Dex".. I like that, it's probably short for something, _Ryder mused to herself.

"..And you know me," Troy continued, "but I don't think I ever got your name..," Troy implied subtly as he casually turned his gaze over to her.

"Ryder," Ryder introduced herself nonchalantly, " R-Y-D-E-R, Ryder," she spelt her name matter of factly, just to make sure it sticked.

"Niiiiice," Troy dragged the word out, emphasizing his appreciation at her unique name while slowly nodding his head in approval and turning to watch the scenery as the convertible flew through the streets.

"Ryder..," Dex purred, "That's hot,".

"It is," Troy cosigned, still slowly nodding his head.

Ryder gushed a little inside, but quickly regained her composure, "Thanks, it _is_ pretty sexy, huh?," Ryder played off her inner elation flawlessly as she flopped back into her seat.

Dex glanced up at the vanity mirror and caught Ryder's gaze. The two held their meeting for a few seconds when Dex grinned and turned his line of vision back to the road. Ryder let out a small giggle and casually rolled her eyes out towards the passing trees, pretending to seem more interested in the trees than staring at Dex. She was more fond of the latter, obviously, but she didn't want him to know that.

Troy casually casted his gaze towards Dex who was now driving with one hand, his other arm resting over the driver's side door, and his hand was over his mouth. It seemed as though he were either thinking, or concealing a smile, and Troy observed the corners of Dex's mouth to see that his latter suspicion had been confirmed. Dex had felt Troy's knowing smirk focusing in on him, and darted his eyes towards Troy. Troy grinned widely as he flicked a cigarette in his mouth and slowly gazed towards Ryder, then back to Dex. Dex picked up what Troy was implying and snickered, shaking his head, dismissing the thought. Troy and Dex had communicated like this often, as if they were apart of some never ending inside joke.

Ryder picked up on this and interjected their weird "conversation", "What's so funny?," she pleaded as she scooted to the edge of her seat and poked her head between them. She hated feeling like she was being left out of the loop.

"It's nothin'," Troy said as he turned to see that Ryder was not convinced, "Really," he tried to reassure her, offering a sincere smile.

"Nothing at all," Dex chuckled and waved a dismissive hand towards Troy.

"Fine then, don't tell me," Ryder huffed as she pouted her lips, flopped back into her seat, and folded her arms across her stomach.

"Aww," Dex teased, as he examined her posture in the mirror.

"Shut up..," Ryder mumbled, trying to suppress a smile that was tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"Go ahead and laugh, you know you want too," Dex teased, occasionally switching his gaze from the mirror to the road.

Unable to contain it any longer, Ryder burst into a mini fit of laughter. She didn't quite know what she was laughing at, but she knew it was funny. Troy even let out a mild belly laugh while Dex pulled up to the church, sporting a triumphant grin on his face.

Ryder observed the run down sanctuary that she had passed on numerous occasions. It was graffiti ridden to say the least, but you could still recognize its gothic design. Gathered in a section on the east side outside of the church, Ryder could make out a crowd of people in purple, and a man speaking out to them from the top step to the side entrance.

"Looks like we're just in time," Troy stated as they all exited the vehicle.

_Pretty ironic for a gang called the Saints to claim a church as their headquarters_, Ryder acknowledged the irony as she joined the crowd near Dex and Troy went beside Julius on the step.

Ryder listened intently to the passion that roared through Julius' voice as he spoke.

"Every muthafucka here knows what we need to do. Those bitches be ridin' around, thinkin' they own these streets," Julius strode along the platform as he spoke,"I don't care what flags they're flyin'... Rollerz, Carnales, Vice Kingz.. No one's makin' this nigga scared to walk the Row. We 'bout to lock this shit down.. Right now," Julius concluded his speech as the Saints surrounding Ryder began to rejoice.

By this time, Ryder had caught the attention of a distinctive looking Saint. His hair was gelled straight upright, towards the air and it was platinum white, save the hair closest to his roots. He had some dark shades on, but Ryder could tell that he was of some Asian descent. His body build was super nice, and he had tattoos along his neck.

"Who the fuck's this chick," The Saint, asked, slowly scanning Ryder head to toe. He was clearly impressed by what he observed, physically speaking, but Ryder was slowly beginning to fume over the crude way that he had addressed her.

Ryder placed one hand on her hip, raised her finger towards him slowly, and effortlessly snaked her neck as she began to chew into him, "Oh uhn-uhn, listen here cabrón," Ryder started as she approached him slowly, still snaking her index finger towards him, "First of all, my name's not _Chick_, so don't call me, _Chick,_".

"Chill the fu-," The platinum haired Saint began, throwing his hands up in mock surrender as Ryder was now inches from his person. They had at least an inch difference in height but Ryder didn't back down.

"Ryder," Ryder interrupted him, which both hands now of her hips,"Ryder, R-Y-D-E-R, that's who the fuck I am," She snaked her neck in rhythm of every letter she spelt. "And you are?," Ryder poked his chest forcefully.

He lowered his arms, and looked down to meet her stare. "I'm Johnny muthafuckin' Gat," he stated matter of factly as he crossed his arms over his chest, accidentally grazing over one of Ryder's breasts, seeing as how they were still inches away from each other.

Ryder noticed the graze but subconsciously shrugged it off, as she was intent on maintaining the lock on their intimidating stares.

The crowd of Saints surrounding them filled the tense air with _Oh Shits, She bad ya'll!, _and things like _DAMN, you heard her?_. They were overtly impressed, and they weren't the only ones. Dex was still among the inner circle of the crowd, and he smiled and nodded at her bold nature. Dex was thoroughly impressed, and a bit turned on.

"The girl's got balls," Dex muttered towards a nearby, onlooking Saint.

"Hell yeah, she does!," The Saint exclaimed.

Ryder swiftly walked past Johnny, slightly bumping into his shoulder and not looking back as she approached the bottom step and cocked her head up at Julius, as he had been watching the whole thing.

"What exactly were you planning to do with this one Julius?," Johnny asked, jutting his head towards Ryder, a mixture of amusement and disbelief laced his tone.

"Troy and I found her, I was gonna' see if she'd be willin' to roll with us. It's obvious she can handle herself," Julius stated with a slight grin.

"Bullshit, if she wanna' roll with us, she gotta' be canonized," Johnny stated defensively.

"He's right Julius, we all had to do it," Troy admitted.

"All right then, you heard 'em," Julius started, staring down at Ryder, "you ready for this girl?,".

Ryder offered no answer; she simply parted her legs and bent her neck from the left to the right side, steadily, popping her neck.

The first wave of Saints fell upon her, and Ryder found no difficulty in taking them out. She had a lot of disarrayed aggression built up within her that she didn't even realize was there and found pleasure in releasing it with every punch and kick that connected to purple clothed flesh.

She went a little easy on the guys, careful not to permanently damage their pride, but she went all out on the female Saints, seeing no guilt in forcing them to draw blood.

It wasn't long before the last Saint fell with a loud, "_**THUD**_" onto the concrete. Ryder, with her chest heaving slightly, examined the area around her. When she realized that there were no Saints willing to challenge her left, she donned a huge smile and turned towards Julius, "That's all you got for me?," she beamed.

Instantly, the Saints cheered and threw their congratulations towards Ryder. Troy quickly descended the church steps and approached Ryder, "You earned your colors today," he quipped as he gently dapped her up.

Dex was next to welcome her into the Saints. Nonchalantly casting his arm around her shoulder he exclaimed,"That was some impressive shit! The last Saint who kicked ass like that was Johnny!," Ryder snickered as Dex rocked her shoulder a bit before he reluctantly drew his hand away from her shoulder.

"Eh, I did it in half the time," Johnny quipped with a smile on his face.

Julius then fist bumped Ryder as he officially inducted her into the ranks of the Saints, "Welcome to the 3rd Street Saints,".

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_**I'll get working on Chapter 3 as soon as possible, please leave feedback so I can gauge how the story is doing. :') **_


	3. Friendly Fire

_**Okay, here's chapter three! Tell me what you guys think, it's torture not knowing how well I'm doing :P**_

**Disclaimer:_ I claim ownership to nothing other than my created characters, plot, and situations._**

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**Chapter 3: Friendly Fire**

As of that moment, Ryder was an official Saint. It felt damn good too, it made her feel like a badass, but just then, in the midst of her newly found badass-ness, Ryder felt a huge hand slap her shoulder, causing her to lurch forward a bit.

Ryder had just regained her balance when she turned to discover that the giant hand belonged to Johnny.

"Damn girl, you kicked so much ass back there - I forgot who was canonizing who," Johnny joked as he guided Ryder into the church. Dex and Troy were following close behind.

"Seriously, you got skills girl," Dex added. Ryder was beyond flattered at this point, she didn't realize that she had put on such a show.

"Hey, where did you learn how to fight like that anyway?," Troy asked, quickly shuffling up the steps of the church.

Ryder smiled coyly,"I didn't really learn from anything in particular," she paused as she tried to choose her words correctly, "I just did whatever I thought would hurt," Ryder shrugged as she entered the spacious church.

"Well from that performance, it's obvious that you know how to hurt muthafuckas'," Dex said, nudging Ryder in the arm as he walked ahead of her into an office type room in the back of the church. Ryder, Troy, and Johnny followed. As they entered the room, Ryder noticed that the walls were semi-covered with newspaper articles and pictures concerning the Rollerz, the Carnales, and the Vice Kings. Ryder figured that this office was the base of operations for the Saints.

"You ever kill a bitch before?," Johnny asked anxiously, apparently excited by the act of killing.

Ryder snickered and shook her head slowly, "Nooo, Johnny," Ryder casually leaned back against a nearby desk, on which, Dex was on the opposite side looking over a color-coded map. "I've never killed a bitch," she stated.

Johnny's eyebrows raised as a mischievous grin spread across his face, "Well, we're just gonna' have to break you out, huh?," Johnny chuckled.

Dex lifted his head from the map and shook his head slowly with a grin on his face, "Sometimes I worry about you Gat,".

"Dex, ain't nothin' more therapeutic than stabbin' somethin'," Gat sighed in leisure.

Ryder laughed softly and hoisted herself up upon the desk, looking back towards Dex to be sure that she wasn't disturbing whatever it was he was working on. Dex glanced up and caught her glare, he smiled to assure her that she was okay where she was.

Suddenly, Julius' voice boomed through the church, "Troy, Gat, we got shit to do,". Ryder jumped slightly at the magnitude of his voice. Dex saw this and snickered to himself.

"Must be somebody's time to die," Johnny sang as he left the office.

"Don't have too much fun without me," Troy winked towards Ryder and Dex as he made his depart from the room.

Ryder rolled her eyes and shifted her position on the desk so that she was turned slightly, looking down at Dex. "Watcha' doin'?," Ryder asked, cocking her head to the side slightly.

Dex lifted his head to meet her curiosity induced, hazel gaze. "Making a territory map," Dex stated, placing his elbows on the desk and leaning forward. "We can't strategically take over the city without knowing who's runnin' what," Dex explained.

"Ohh," Ryder said, slightly intrigued. Ryder hopped off the desk and walked around to stand beside Dex. "Soo.. you're like the brains of the Saints, huh?," Ryder asked, placing her hands on one of Dex's shoulder and laying her chin on top of them, peering down at the colorful map on the desk. Ryder was surprisingly comfortable with Dex, which was weird because they had just met earlier that day.

_Mmm... He smells nice_, Ryder thought to herself as she inhaled his scent. _Like heaven, _Ryder concluded as Dex's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Shit, I guess that's one way to put it," Dex sighed, "I'm not Johnny, but I think I like to shoot shit a little more than makin' maps... But somebody's gotta do it,". Dex turned his head towards Ryder who was still lounging on his shoulder.

"You know, it would be cool if I could stand up straight," Dex said sarcastically, slightly nudging his shoulder that Ryder was occupying.

Honestly, Dex didn't mind having Ryder resting on him, but he couldn't feel his shoulder anymore.

"Yeah, that would be cool," Ryder started lazily, "but you're comfy, so I'm stayin' put," she laughed as she nuzzled her head against his shoulder.

Dex smiled and threw her a sideways glare.

"Okay..Fine.. Fiiinnee, fine, fine," Ryder groaned as she slowly removed her head from his shoulder and dragged her hands lazily down his arm, "But since I can't have your comfy shoulder, I'm taking your arm," Ryder declared as she wrapped her arms around Dex's.

Dex rose up from the desk and snickered, "Fair enough, but that means that you gotta' go everywhere my arm goes,". Dex headed out of the office with Ryder in tow.

"Ohh, fun," Ryder gushed as she gently squeezed Dex's arm, "where we goin'?," she asked as they exited the church, it was only about two in the afternoon.

"Friendly Fire," Dex simply stated as they approached a customized purple Raycaster.

"That gun store?," Ryder asked, not very familiar with the place.

Dex pulled his keys out of his pocket and pushed a button which made the car's butterfly doors spread up. "That's the place," he said as he motioned for Ryder to get into the car.

Ryder reluctantly released his arm and got into the car. Dex pushed her door down and made his way to the driver's seat when Ryder asked, "What are we goin' there for?,"

Dex settled into the vehicle, closed his door, and turned towards Ryder. "So you can learn how to use one of these," Dex stated as he pulled a T3K Urban SMG out of his inner coat pocket, grinning.

Ryder's eyes widened with awe, "Fun," she stated, eyeing the weapon with great interest.

"Very," Dex added as he slide the weapon back inside of his jacket and pulled away from the church.

Ryder tucked her crimply bang behind her ear as she absently played with the radio dial. She settled for KRhyme FM as she heard the intro to her favorite song, "Bounce Like My Checks" by Aisha. Ryder shrieked with excitement as she threw her arms above her head and sung along to the radio.

Dex coasted his glance over to Ryder, who was now swaying and bobbing her head to the beat. Dex's eyebrows rose in amusement as Ryder sung in unison with Aisha - "_Bouncin' like my checks baby, back in the day, before I got this paper, before I got paid_,".

"So it's safe that assume that you're an Aisha fan?," Dex asked, shifting his attention back to the road. Ryder nodded curtly and turned her head towards the passing scenery. She felt heat rush to her face as she was a little embarrassed that he had seen that. Even though they weren't facing each other, Dex could tell from her abnormal silence, that she was turning a little red in the face.

Dex pulled up to Friendly Fire and put the car in park. Ryder was still quiet. Dex turned towards her and smiled as he reached over and turned her head to face him by guiding her chin with his index finger. "Don't get all shy and shit on me now," Dex started, removing his finger from under her chin, "Besides," he continued, "it was cute,".

Now Ryder could really feel the heat flooding her cheeks. Not wanting him to catch her in the act of being embarrassed again, Ryder quickly shook off her nerves, "Yeah, I know it was cute," she started as she lifted her door and exited the vehicle, "I was just waiting for you to acknowledge just how great my amplitude of cuteness was,". Ryder shut the passenger door and sauntered towards the entrance to Friendly Fire.

Dex allowed his gaze to follow Ryder as he got out of the car slowly approached the store, "You're somethin' else," he muttered just loud enough for her to hear.

Ryder put on a bright smile and headed into the gun store, Dex followed in step. Once they entered the store they both headed in separate directions; Dex headed over to the clerk and leaned over the counter, gesturing back towards Ryder every now and again. The clerk would then proceed to nod eagerly, smile, and slide a purple box across the counter to Dex. Ryder, on the other hand, was attracted to the other east end of the store, she was admiring a golden plated GDHC.50 pistol. "That's too hot," Ryder mumbled to herself, lightly thumbing the gold plating, her fingers trembled at the touch. Ryder was so consumed in the beautiful weapon that she hadn't noticed someone approaching her.

Dex casually leaned against a nearby shelf and looked down at Ryder who was tracing the outline of the gun with her fingers. "So you got an eye for pretty shit, huh?," Dex asked, grinning down at her.

Ryder lifted her head slowly, not surprised by his presence and snickered, "It's a sexy ass gun... If there ever were such a thing,". Ryder rose from her squatting position, although she still had to look upwards a little to make eye contact with Dex.

"Well if you learn fast enough, you might just get a sexy ass gun like that," Dex started, easing off the shelf, "But for now, you're just gonna' have to settle for it's slightly sexier counterpart," Dex teased as he pulled a gun from behind his back. It was identical to the one Ryder was gawking at, except it was plated in purple shaded platinum, opposed to gold. Dex offered it to Ryder, whose jaw would have completely hit the floor by now if it had been heavier.

"Now _that's_ fucking sexy," Ryder purred, eyes widening in admiration.

"Mhm," Dex nodded, "You can take it whenever you feel like it," Dex said sarcastically, pretending to become impatient. Ryder simply blinked up at Dex, then back at the gun, mouth agape and eyes bewildered. Dex slowly shook his head and smiled as he grabbed Ryder's hand, taking her by surprise, and placing it onto the gun. "Now close your hand," Dex instructed her as if she were in kindergarten. Ryder obeyed and closed her hand gently. "That's a good girl," Dex teased as he removed his hand. Feeling the warmth of Dex's hand leave hers, she closed her mouth and blinked back up at Dex.

"It's yours Ry," Dex assured her, answering her unasked question.

The sound of her affable nickname snapped Ryder back to consciousness, she loved the way it flowed from his diction so naturally. "For real?," Ryder asked hopefully.

"Yep," Dex nodded, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Like... For real, for real?," Ryder asked hesitantly, not believing what she had previously heard.

"Yessir," Dex nodded again, a smile slowly spreading across his face.

"Dex.. If this is some kind of fucked up joke.. Im amputating your cojones," Ryder stated, slowly meeting Dex's gaze, allowing a smile to creep onto her face.

Dex leaned forward, inches away from her ear,"Me encantaría verte intentarlo (I'd love to see you try)," he purred slowly, and pulled away.

Ryder smiled brightly and raised her eyebrows, she was thoroughly impressed with his fluency of her native tongue. Ryder laughed and playfully shoved Dex in the arm, "I didn't know you could speak Spanish!,".

"I can do a lot of things," Dex teased, grinning slyly.

Ryder's interest had been piqued. Ryder took a step closer to Dex, leaving a few inches between them. She squinted her eyes slightly and cocked her head to the side subtly, "I can do a lot too," Ryder purred.

Dex lowered his hands into his pockets, not breaking his stare into Ryder's eyes. "I bet I can name a couple things you can't do, anatomically speaking..," Dex goaded softly.

"Mmm, would I even want to do whatever it is I can't already do?," Ryder asked slowly, "... Anatomically speaking,".

"You'd want somebody to do it for you," Dex simply stated, slightly biting down on his bottom lip.

Ryder smiled and licked her lips as she thought out her comeback,"And what exactly, would I want them to do?,".

Dex laughed to himself and rubbed his chin, "I don't think that would be appropriate to discuss in a gun shop," he stated, nodding towards a nearby elderly woman who was attentively listening in on their conversation. Dex waved curtly to the old woman, who offered a gentle, knowing smile in response.

Ryder turned her head slightly, and saw the woman. Ryder laughed, slightly embarrassed and playfully slapped Dex's chest.

Dex looked down once more at Ryder, "I think a bedroom would be more suitable," Dex grinned, egging on Ryder's embarrassment. Ryder gasped, and looked towards the old woman who winked at Dex and headed to another department of the store.

Both Ryder and Dex burst into laughter. Ryder leaned forward and bashfully laid her head on Dex's chest, "Have you no shame man?," Ryder asked between fits of laughter.

Dex chuckled and threw his arms around Ryder, rocking her back and forth, "No shame in the game," Dex sighed in feigned weariness. Dex looked down at Ryder who was still shaking her head against him and saw a shimmer of purple metal. "Oh yeah," Dex remarked suddenly, pushing Ryder back gently, "You gotta' learn how to use that," he said, nodding towards the pistol in her grasp.

"Oh yeah... That _is_ why we came here, isn't it?," Ryder stated sarcastically, although she had just remembered that herself.

"Girl, come on," Dex snickered, leading Ryder into the shooting range located in the back of the store.

Ryder and Dex had been in Friendly Fire for about three hours when they came to the conclusion that Ryder was damn good at using a gun. Ryder picked up the "art" quickly, but the extra two hours kicked in when she pretended to hold the gun incorrectly so that Dex would come up behind her and guide her hands into the right positions. Ryder figured that Dex caught on to her little scheme by the fifth time that she'd made the same mistake, and he did. Dex didn't see a reason to stop "assisting" however, the way he saw it, it was a win-win situation for the both of them.

Ryder and Dex made their leave from Friendly Fire, and were on their way to Dex's car. "Hey," Ryder quipped as they approached the purple vehicle. Dex turned his head slightly, acknowledging her voice. "Where the hell do I put this?," Ryder asked, waving her gun towards Dex. Dex smiled and walked up to her. He gradually pulled the gun out of Ryder's hand and tugged her forward by a belt loop on her ripped jeans. "Ooh, aggressive," Ryder purred. Dex chuckled lightly and shook his head. Dex then lifted the hem of Ryder's tank top a little, exposing her flat stomach and pulled her belt loop outward, he then flicked the pistol on safety and tucked it into the opening he had created. Finally, Dex pulled the hem of her shirt over the newly- concealed weapon.

"There you go," Dex stated as he stepped back from Ryder and opened the doors of the Raycaster.

Ryder glanced down at her waistline and advanced towards the car, "You know, I could've done that," she stated matter of factly.

"Then why didn't you?," Dex teased, settling into the driver's seat.

"I didn't know where to put it!," Ryder laughed.

"That's why I showed you," Dex stated.

"You could've told me what to do," Ryder retorted playfully.

"Well shit, maybe I wanted to do it," Dex snickered as he pulled away from Friendly Fire and advanced out into the street.

"Alright then," Ryder quipped. "Hey I'm hungry," she added, abruptly changing the subject.

"No shit?," Dex asked semi-sarcastically as he glanced over at Ryder, "Freckle Bitches?," he suggested.

"Fuck yeah," Ryder nodded, as she reclined in the passenger's seat, allowing her hair to flow in the wind.

Moments later, Ryder and Dex were sitting across from each other at a table in Freckle Bitches.

"So," Dex started, his mouth stuffed with fries, "How exactly did you meet up with Troy and Julius?," he asked, swallowing the remainder of the burger in his mouth and chasing it down with some soda.

Ryder laughed to herself as she reached over the table and whipped a dot of ketchup off of the corner of Dex's mouth with her finger, "He didn't tell you?,".

"He told me something, but it doesn't sate my curiosity...," Dex stated as he sat back in his chair.

"Oh so that's my job, huh?," Ryder snickered.

"If you may," Dex insisted, grinning at Ryder.

"Okay then," Ryder smiled as she sipped her drink. Ryder recounted all the events of that night, from her, Robyn, Carlos, and Anthonio entering the club, to her and Robyn being pinned down by the VK. By the end of her story, Dex had situated his elbows on the table, listening attentively. "So yeah, that's pretty much it..," Ryder concluded. Dex nodded his head slowly. "Did that match up to what Troy told you?," Ryder asked.

"Not entirely..," Dex snickered, "He mostly talked about you and your sister's physique..And something about a blue dress," Dex stated bluntly. Ryder smiled coyly and looked down at her lap.

"Hm, it's my favorite dress," she admitted.

"Word? Well, with the way he described it, I think I might wanna' see it sometime," Dex replied softly.

Ryder smiled, and nodded curtly, "Maybe.. If you drive me home, then I'll definitely consider playing dress up for you one day," Ryder purred.

"Ima' hold you to that," Dex laughed, as they two of them headed out of the fast food restaurant and into his car.

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_**Ta-Daa! There's Chapter 3. Give me your opinions, suggestions...anything! Chapter 4 will be out soon! ='D **_


	4. Quirks Are Cute

_**Sorry for the weeks wait! I've been really busy with school work, and I wasn't sure where I was headed with this chapter. After a lot of mind changing, I've decided that this chapter will just be a little cute one ;). But I know exactly where I want to go from here so chapter 5 will be... VERY interesting! Anyway, I'm babbling... I hope you guys enjoy chapter 4! Tell me what you think!**_

**Disclaimer:_ I claim ownership to nothing other than my created characters, plot, and situations._**

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**Chapter 4: Quirks Are Cute**

Ryder turned her key in the lock and slowly entered her apartment. As soon as she stepped foot into the bright abode, she was eagerly greeted by Robyn.

"Ryder!," Robyn squealed as she attacked her younger sibling with a giant bear hug.

"Robyn," Ryder croaked as she gasped for air from her sister's embrace, "I see you're feeling better?,".

"Yeah," Robyn responded tersely as she released her grip on Ryder. Robyn pulled back and examined her sister, her emerald eyes stared intently into Ryder's hazel ones. Robyn and Ryder looked very similar in appearance, anyone could tell that they were sisters. Their few differences lie in their hair color, eye color, and body shape. Robyn had dark red hair, as opposed to Ryder's chestnut brown. Robyn's eyes were a dark, solid emerald green, they didn't transition according to light as Ryder's. Robyn wasn't as thick as Ryder, but she was a bit taller and she was more heavyset in the chest. Robyn also had a few scattered freckles that cascaded across the bridge of her nose. Despite these differing physical traits and Robyn being two years older than Ryder, they could pass for twins under bad lighting.

"Soooo?...," Robyn began, "How was your day?,".

"Oh yeah!," Ryder's eyes lit up as she advanced towards the couch and flopped onto it's cushiony surface, "How could I forget?," she quipped, patting the cushion next to her - beaconing Robyn to take a seat. Robyn eagerly sat down next to Ryder and looked engagingly over at her sister, anticipating her story.

Ryder artfully retold every event of that day, from getting a lift from Dex and Troy to meeting Gat and getting canonized to learning how to use a gun.

"And this is the one he got for me...," Ryder quipped excitedly as she pulled the purple plated gun out from the waistline of her jeans and placed it between Robyn and herself.

"That's...," Robyn gasped as she studied the weapon in awe, "So fucking sexy...," she gasped.

"That's what I said!," Ryder exclaimed.

"And he like.. Got this for you?," Robyn gawked as she picked up the gun and lightly caressed the platinum plating.

"Mhm," Ryder nodded, "I was looking at a gold one just like it in the store, I guess he saw me," she shrugged.

Robyn whistled in admiration as she placed the pistol back on the couch. "I bet he doesn't get shit like that for every new Saint, let alone teach them how to use it..," Robyn hinted subtly, grinning slyly.

Ryder smiled and quirked up a suggestive eyebrow, "That's what I figured," Ryder quipped, tucking her gun back into her pants.

Robyn laughed and began to rise from the couch, "Cute description, tells dirty jokes, he thinks you're cute when you feel embarrassed..," Robyn began, "He sounds like he's just your type, huh?," she quipped.

Ryder smiled and shrugged. "Well, he's supposed to be picking me up in the morning," Ryder yawned, "so you might be able to meet 'em,and _you_ can tell _me_," Ryder smiled as she got up from the couch.

"Ohhh fun!," Robyn quipped as she glanced over at the clock. It was only about 9:30 but Ryder was quietly dragging her feet down the hall to her room. "You goin' to bed already?," Robyn called after her. Ryder simply nodded her head and entered her room.

In a quick succession, Ryder unlaced and toed off her boots, took off her jeans - leaving her in her leggings and tank top, and flopped onto her bed. As soon as she made contact with the bed she felt the sting of hot metal on her abdomen.

"Owww...," Ryder groaned as she reached down and slowly pulled the purple pistol out and laid it on the nightstand next to her bed. Minutes later, Ryder was fast asleep.

The next morning Ryder was abruptly awakened by the sound of loud car horn blowing, and shouting.

"Shut the fuck up!," Ryder groaned into her pillow as she glanced over at her table clock to see that it was eight o'clock in the morning. "Why in fuck's name is anybody even awake right now!," Ryder exclaimed in frustration as she slowly sat up in her bed and ran her fingers through her now curly hair.

"Yo Ryder!," male voices bellowed from the street below Ryder's window, "...Bring ya ass, girl!," the voices yelled.

"Oh God no...," Ryder gasped as she scrambled out of bed and stumbled to the window sill. Ryder pried the window open and looked down to see a purple Mag parked in front of the apartment building. In the bed of the truck stood Dex and Troy. "Dios mío...," Ryder sighed as Robyn poked her head into her room.

"Ryder... You hear that?," Robyn asked cautiously as she entered Ryder's room. Ryder smiled and gestured towards the window. Robyn made her way to the window sill where Ryder was positioned and peered over Ryder's shoulder.

"That's Dex and Troy," Ryder mentioned as she poked her head out the window. "Hey!," Ryder shouted down at the guys. Dex and Troy casually looked up at Ryder and her sister from the bed of the truck. "Either come up or shut up," Ryder cooed. She heard a slight snicker from Dex as he hopped down from the truck.

"Alright then," Dex laughed up at Ryder, "what's the number?,".

"Twenty eight," Ryder stated as she sauntered away from the window. Robyn stayed at the window and watched the guys as they entered the building.

"You better hurry up and get in the shower Ry, they're-," Robyn started as she turned around to see that Ryder had already left the room. "Oh okay..," Robyn shrugged as she left the room, decked in her pink pajama top and pink shorts that had a Playboy Bunny logo on the back.

By the time Ryder got out of the shower, the guys were on the third floor.

Robyn sat on a stool in the kitchen and started flipping through a magazine. Seconds into an article about how to avoid breaking your neck in seven inch heels, there was a slight bang at the door. "Was that supposed to be a knock?," Robyn muttered to herself as she hopped off the stool and headed towards the door.

"Well hellooo," Robyn sang as she opened the door. Robyn slowly examined the two men standing in the doorway. One of them she recognized instantly, which was Troy. Troy was leaning against the right side of the doorway. Juxtaposed to him was who she guessed was Dex. He was leaning with his back completely against the left side of the doorway so he was facing Troy.

"Hey," Troy greeted, the cigarette in his mouth moved as his bottom lip did.

Dex nonchalantly turned his head towards Robyn and grinned, "Nice pajamas,".

Robyn casually glanced down at her ensemble, turned her feet inwards, and knocked her knees back, "Awe, thanks, they are pretty cute, huh?," she chimed as she stepped aside to let them enter. Dex snickered as he followed Troy into the apartment.

"Whatcha' laughin at?," Robyn asked as she closed the door behind them.

Dex opened his mouth to answer her but Troy's voice is what was heard.

"He's laughing because you sound like Ryder," Troy grinned as he leaned over the kitchen counter and glanced at Dex.

"Took the words right outta' my mouth," Dex laughed as he sat down on a nearby sofa.

"I know it," Troy snickered matter of factly.

Robyn smiled brightly as she sauntered back to her stool. "Well, that makes sense.. She _is _my sister, after all," she quipped.

"Ah, I see it now," Dex muttered softly, scanning Robyn slowly, subtly noting the strong resemblance to Ryder.

Trot nodded and reluctantly began to speak, "...So you were with her when-,".

"Yeah," Robyn quipped, interrupting Troy.

Troy was quiet for a moment before he spoke, "You feeling better?," he asked cautiously.

"Much," Robyn assured him, sensing his sincere intentions. "Oh and thanks for.. You know, saving our lives," Robyn quipped softly.

Troy felt heat rise in the back of his neck and swiftly placed a hand to the offending tell. "Anytime, wasn't a big thing you know...," Troy responded coyly, rubbing the back of his neck, "Just shootin' VK's and all..,".

Dex could sense Troy's embarrassment and it made him chuckle a little. Dex rarely ever felt nervous, or embarrassed. If you praise him for something, he'll toot his own horn even louder. Cold confidence, that's what Julius called it.

Dex was slouched over in a corner of the sofa and hadn't even noticed that Robyn had taken a seat across from him on another sofa. Her presence had become obvious, however, when she interrupted him from his thoughts.

"So you're the Dex I've heard so much about?," Robyn asked as she scanned Dex from head to toe, nodding her head slowly in approval.

This comment caused Dex to stir in his seat a little. Dex sat up slowly and quirked up an eyebrow, "That depends," Dex started as he grinned towards Robyn, "Do I _want_ to be the Dex you've heard about?,".

Robyn giggled and shuffled around on her cushion, "Mhm!, the Dex I heard about seems to be very -,".

"Hey!," A light voice virtually boomed from the bathroom. Just then, the bathroom door creaked open and Ryder poked her head out and look down the hall into the living room area. Her hair was pristinely pressed and straight so it draped down at her shoulders when she stuck her head out.

"Hey!," Ryder shouted again as she drew her arm out of the doorway, wielding a hot pink flat iron. "Don't say anything you won't live to regret Robyn!," Ryder warned as she waved the flat iron in their direction.

Robyn laughed and threw a hand over her mouth, "I didn't even say anything!," Robyn quipped.

"Yet!," Ryder countered as she retreated into the bathroom, "I'll be out in a minute, guys," she said as she slid the door close.

Troy glanced over at Dex, "You hear that man?," Troy started as he crossed his arms on the counter, "They've been talking,".

Dex snickered as he turned his head towards Troy, "Sounds like it, my dude,". "I would just _love_ to hear what they said," Dex sighed as he laid his head back on the sofa and turned his head slowly towards Robyn, "But Ryder's mean ol' sister won't tell me," Dex mock pouted.

Robyn giggled as she prepared to counter his accusation when the bathroom door creaked open and a pair of small feet shuffled down the hall.

"You damn right she won't tell you," Ryder snickered as she entered the living room. She was wearing a crop-top black shirt with a purple eight on the front. She also donned a pair of distressed jean shorts - the butt her gun was showing slightly. She also had on purple low top canvas sneakers, a silver anklet, and a pair of purple hoop earrings. Her hair was straightened so her auburn streaks shone through. To top off the look, Ryder fringed the bang in her hair.

Troy whistled as he pushed away from the counter,"Sup Ryder," he greeted.

"Hey Troy!," Ryder quipped as she smiled brightly towards Troy. Ryder then advanced behind the couch where Dex was sitting. She placed one hand on either side of her and looked down at him, "Hey you!,"she exclaimed.

Dex grinned and looked up at her, "Time to go?," he smirked.

"Mhm," Ryder nodded, pushing herself from the sofa.

Dex slowly rose from the sofa and glared towards Robyn who was now lying down on the sofa with her knees pointed upright. "Bye ," Dex snickered as he headed towards the door.

"Bye !," Robyn retorted playfully, sticking her tongue out at him.

"Good seein' you Robyn," Troy quipped as he followed Dex out of the apartment.

"Bye," Robyn dragged out the departing saying as she waved towards Troy.

Ryder giggled and headed towards the door after Dex and Troy, "Bye sis!," she called over her shoulder.

"Bye sissy!," Robyn exclaimed as Ryder left the apartment.

Ryder, Dex, and Troy quickly advanced down the apartment floors and were outside, approaching the customized Mag. Ryder noticed that there was a young Saints member sitting in the driver seat, which that observation, Ryder saw no reason to actually sit inside the truck. With her mind thoroughly made up, Ryder headed to the bed of the truck, and hoisted herself upon it. Troy was headed to the passenger's side when he saw her climb aboard the bed. Troy chuckled and turned towards Dex, "Maybe you should be the one to go back there with her," Troy suggested slyly.

Dex grinned, "To make sure she doesn't fall off the truck of course," he affirmed.

"Of course," Troy snickered as he entered the vehicle. Dex then proceeded to board the back of the trunk to accompany Ryder.

Ryder had settled down onto the floor of the bed and had her legs stretched out in front of her.

"Havin' fun back here?," Dex chimed as he sat down near her. He had sat himself up against a wall of the truck and had one leg outstretched, and the other was semi-stretched out.

"It was fun by myself," Ryder started, "but now it's a party!," she exclaimed.

"Hell yeah," Dex laughed as he cast his gaze towards Ryder, stopping short at her eyes. They were hazel, he had already noticed that before, but now they had a hint of green emerging from the center of her iris. Dex cocked his head to the side slightly, greatly intrigued.

"What?," Ryder chuckled, feeling the heat of Dex's gaze.

"I thought your eyes were brown?," Dex asked, softening his stare.

"They are," Ryder quipped, smiling softly, "but when it's not a lot of light out, they turn, like... Greenish? I guess you could say,".

"That's fuckin' hot," Dex nodded, "do they change with your mood and shit too?," he inquired, clearly interested in all of Ryder's little quirks.

Ryder smiled coyly, "You think it's hot? I always thought it was a little weird,".

"Shit, we all a little weird," Dex remarked.

"Haha, I guess so, huh?," Ryder laughed, "But, I'm not sure if they change with my mood.. I don't think they do," Ryder replied.

"I guess we're just gonna' have to experiment with 'em and find out then," Dex concluded, grinning at Ryder.

"Well that'll be fun," Ryder cosigned.

"Yep," Dex began tersely, "We're gonna' have to go through all of your emotions together," Dex sighed, pretending to be burdened with the task.

"Mhm," Ryder nodded, "You gotta' be with me when I'm mad, and sad," she began to list items.

"Happy and glad," Dex added.

"Moody and mean," Ryder pointed out.

"Nice and calm," Dex said.

"Cold and annoyed," Ryder snickered, beaconing Dex to keep trying to counter her.

"Hot and bothered," Dex smiled mischievously as he scanned Ryder slowly.

Ryder's jaw dropped slightly as she giggled and playfully nudged Dex's foot with hers, "Why you gotta' take it there?," Ryder asked, still giggling and smiling playfully. Ryder had always been known for being a bit forward, and she always enjoys a good dirty joke. The fact that Dex was even more forward than she was, and his mind - even more filthy, made him even more alluring to her.

"Hey, I'm just playing the game," Dex snickered as he lightly nudged her foot back in mock retaliation.

Ryder smiled to herself. She was really comfortable around Dex, and she loved how that felt. She was just being herself without even being aware of it. Don't be mistaken, Ryder was always herself 100% of the time, but she always felt a sense of awareness of her behavior when she was around other people. Now however, she felt like she didn't need to be guarded or filtered. Ryder sighed in content as she drew her attention back to Dex.

"How did this game get started anyway... I forget," Ryder chuckled.

"We were talking about your eyes," Dex reminded her subtly.

"Oh yeah," Ryder muttered softly. "It's funny how you noticed something like that," Ryder noted.

Dex quirked an eyebrow, "What I notice?,".

"My eyes change color," Ryder answered softly, pulling her legs up to her chest.

"Yeah, I notice a lot of shit," Dex shrugged, nudging Ryder's foot idly.

Ryder glanced around towards her feet and observed the mini-game of footsie going on between her and Dex that she hadn't even realized was taking place. Ryder tried to suppress a smile that was spreading across her face, she felt as though she was smiling too much for one ride, but she couldn't help it. Ryder let her mind wander as she gazed over at Dex who had his head tilted back, looking into the sky. She secretly dwelled on the comment he had just made, when he said he noticed a lot of things. She couldn't help but wonder if he noticed more things about her, or if he wanted to.

Well he did. He really, really, did. But of course, Ryder doesn't know that.

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**_There it is folks! Leave feedback and all that, I really appreciate the views and the reviews! :')_**


	5. Ryder & A Roller Part 1

_**Hellooooo beautiful people! :) Sorry for the wait, but here's chapter 5! I intended for this chapter to have a lot more plot and some drama, but I didn't want to try and squeeze it all into this chapter, it wouldn't be as thorough as I like ;')... So this is part one of two! Enjoy :'D**_

**Disclaimer:_ I claim ownership to nothing other than my created characters, plot, and situations._**

* * *

**Chapter 5: A Bond Between a Ryder and a Roller - Part 1**

The ride to the church was over quickly, but to Ryder it seemed like it had been forever since she had got onto the truck. With the truck securely parked at the church, Ryder heard the driver's and passenger's door open. Troy and the young Saint hopped out of the car and headed for the church.

Dex stood up in the bed of the truck and stretched, he looked down at Ryder, expecting her to follow suit. She would have, but her legs had fallen asleep.

Ryder looked up at Dex to meet his gaze and answered his unasked question, "My legs are asleep," she whined playfully.

Dex smiled and kneeled down next to her,"I think I can fix that," he quipped. Dex then placed his hands firmly on both of Ryder's legs and shook them vigorously.

"Ahh!" Ryder yelped as she bursted into a fit of laughter. "Okay, okay!" She protested, "They're up, they're up!".

Dex laughed as he rose to his feet,"Then my job here is done,". Dex headed towards the edge of the bed and hopped down onto the pavement below. Ryder pushed herself up and approached the edge of the bed; it was a short jump that she could easily conquer, but she wasn't done getting assistance from Dex. In full acknowledgement of that fact, Ryder glanced down at Dex innocently.

Dexter snickered and shook his head playfully, "Alright, come here," he cooed as he held his arms out to Ryder. Ryder smiled as she bent down and placed her hands on Dex's shoulders. Dex gently placed his hands on Ryder's hips and swiftly lifted her off of the truck and placed her on the ground. When she landed, Ryder found that her arms were wrapped completely around Dex's neck and his arms around her waist. Immediately noticing their close proximity to each other, Ryder looked down at the ground coyly. Dex saw the flush of red rush into Ryder's cheeks and grinned. Slowly, Dex unwrapped his arms from around Ryder's waist. Ryder mirrored his hesitation and brought her arms down to her sides.

In an effort to distract herself from the awkward situation, Ryder casted her gaze over towards the entrance of the church, careful not to make eye contact with Dex. Ryder noticed a large amount of Saints entering the church and felt her brow furrow.

"Hey, why are so many Saints here so early today?," Ryder asked as she followed behind Dex towards the church.

"Julius is calling a meeting," Dex stated tersely as he and Ryder approached the steps of the church.

"Oh?," Ryder began, "About what?".

"Some of our boys went out the other day and reclaimed some Saints territory," Dex began as he shuffled up the stairs with Ryder following close in step. "My bet is that he's about to get serious about this shit and we're gonna' start making moves against the Carnales, Rollerz, and Vice Kings," Dex explained as they entered the church.

"Does that mean that I finally get to see some action?," Ryder asked eagerly as she and Dex joined the crowd of Saints surrounding Julius.

"Most definitely," Dex smirked.

With that said, Ryder allowed herself to tune in to what Julius was saying. Dex had been spot on, Julius was ready to take on all of the opposing street gangs. Following his speech, Julius assigned lieutenants to each gang.

"Dex," Julius started, "You got the Carnales," he paused for a moment. "Ever since they hooked up with the Columbians, it's like they own this town, and with that drug money rolling in, we can't compete." Julius emphasized, "Be smart how you move against 'em. The Lopez family been runnin' that gang for thirty years, there's a reason they still around,".

"Got it," Dex nodded.

Julius then turned his attention to Troy,"Troy, you're dealing with the Vice Kings," he declared sternly.

"Not a chance," Troy protested swiftly.

"Fuck you say?" Julius barked. Ryder jumped a little and glanced at Dex who had shot a narrow look at Troy.

"Anyone but them..." Troy continued to argue.

_But why mothafucka? What's your big issue? _Dex thought to himself, holding his fixed glare on Troy.

Ryder casually glanced up at Dex and studied his gaze; he looked irritated and anxious, and he was looking dead at Troy. Ryder slowly shifted her gaze from Dex to Troy, then back to Dex. _I wonder what that's all about..._ Ryder thought to herself as she gently tugged Dex's jacket.

Dex looked down at Ryder, his expression softening a bit.

"You good?" Ryder asked in a hushed tone.

Dex shot Troy another quick look then put on a slight grin and gazed down at Ryder, "I'm cool," he responded nonchalantly.

Their exchange was cut short when Julius continued to speak to Troy. "You scared of going against Benjamin King?" Julius asked, his tone lowering slightly.

Just then, Johnny stepped forward from the midst of the gang members. "Man fuck that!" He exclaimed, "I'll take King out!".

"Johnny, it's not that simple," Julius tried to convince Johnny down.

"Bullets still kill mothafuckas right? Doesn't get much simpler than that," Johnny countered.

Ryder smiled to herself, _Johnny's kinda hot when he's all... "Yelly" and "shouty" and junk.._

Julius sighed and turned to Dex, "Keep an eye on ya boy," he advised.

"I don't need a fucking babysitter Julius!" Johnny retorted in defense.

_You're certainly right... A babysitter is not what you need, Mr. Sexy Yelly Shouty, _Ryder mused. _Okay.. I'm done.. _She swore to herself, drawing her attention back to the seriousness of the situation.

Julius kept his gaze locked on Dex and lowered his voice into a more demanding tone, "Keep an eye.. On ya boy,".

Dex nodded curtly. "Who's got the Rollerz?" Dex asked, realizing that there was a lieutenant for every gang but that one.

"I do," Declared a strong, feminine voice. Just then a fair skinned woman, obviously of Chinese heritage, sauntered into the room. She had on a black top that stopped just a few inches below her cleavage, and some blue track pants that had a white stripe down the sides. Ryder gingerly tilted her head to the side and examined the woman, she had not been with the Saints long, but it was refreshing to see another female amidst all the men. _Okay... Now who are you and why the hell are you wearing blue?_ Ryder anxiously wondered to herself.

"Lin?" Dex asked a bit surprised, as he looked over at the woman.

_Well, that answers my first question_, Ryder assessed.

"The fuck you wearin' blue for?" Johnny interjected, answering Ryder's unasked question.

_Leave it to Mr. Sexy Yelly Shouty to ask what has yet to be answered... _Ryder snickered to herself.

"I asked Lin to hook up with the Rollerz," Julius interjected, jumping to Lin's defense. "We don't know much about these fuckas so I wanted one of us on the inside," He explained.

"I didn't think the Rollerz pimped hoes," A random saint joked. Laughter rippled through the Saints surrounding Lin. Ryder raised an eyebrow at the remark and shook her head in disdain.

Lin swiftly turned to the Saint who made the comment and in one quick move, punched him dead in the face. The Saint was knocked out cold. _'Ohhh' s_ and _'Damn' s _filled the air surrounding Lin. Ryder snickered and clapped her hands in approval as Lin addressed the crowd of Saints, "Any other comments?".

"Just one," Ryder began as she stepped forward a bit, "That was a nice ass sucker punch!" Ryder exclaimed, beaming brightly. Lin laughed and smiled towards Ryder.

"Thanks," Lin quipped.

"Yeah it was _aight_," Johnny snickered stepping up from the crowd, "But when you punch, don't throw your shoulder so much,".

"Shut up, Johnny," Lin sneered as she entered the crowd and took a place next to Ryder.

"Hey, I'm just sayin'," Johnny threw up his hands in mock defense.

Ryder cracked a smile and turned her attention back to Julius as the crowd calmed down, he was just about finished with his speech.

"Alright y'all calm down," Julius started as he approached the crowd, "You all know what you need to do, it's our time now... Lets get this shit started,". With that, the Saints all stirred and cheered around him, slowly dispersing to plan their assaults on the other gangs. Ryder, Dex, and Lin stayed in the central part of the church. Ryder had taken a seat on the top step where Julius had been standing; Dex was leaning on a wall behind her, while Lin was sitting on a worn out bench that was situated in front of Ryder and Dex.

"So you're the new girl, huh?" Lin asked, grinning at Ryder.

"Heh, if that's what they're calling me," Ryder shrugged and she leaned back on the step. "My name is -," Ryder began.

"Ryder," Dex cut her off, "R-Y-D-E-R, Ryder," he spelt, mocking her signature introduction.

Ryder's jaw dropped slightly, as she allowed a wide smile to slowly spread across her face. Ryder pulled her lips inward, trying to suppress her oncoming laughter. Unable to contain it any longer, Ryder burst into laughter along with Dex who soon joined in.

"What h-," Ryder huffed in between fits of laughter, "Wha-wha-," she tried to catch her breath, "What he said!" she finally managed to say. Ryder sighed in relief, overcoming her giggle fit, as she reclined on the step, and titled her head back to view Dex, who was upside down to her and laughing just as hard as she had been. Dex caught his breath, pushed himself off the wall, and sat down next to Ryder on the step. Dex had mumbled something unintelligible near Ryder's ear and soon the two of them were experiencing another episode of uncontrollable laughter.

Lin crossed her legs on the bench and grinned. Her eyes darted from Dex to Ryder, then back to Dex; she had caught Dex's line of sight and smiled brightly at him. Lin chuckled as she continued to watch the duo.

"Yo Dex," Troy called as he re-entered the central area of the church, "Julius wants us to take care of some shit," he announced, gesturing for Dex to follow him.

Dex threw his head back and looked up at the ceiling as he sighed. Dex lifted his head and playfully nudged Ryder in the arm before rising up from the step and reluctantly heading for the door with Troy.

"Alright then, I'm out," Dex announced, saluting Ryder and Lin.

"Buh-bye now," Lin gave a slight wave to Dex and chuckled.

"Have fun," Ryder snickered.

Soon the girls were left alone in the church. Ryder got up from the step, and looked over at Lin, "So, you're in charge over the moves against the Rollerz right?" Ryder asked, smiling mischievously. This caused Lin to stand up from the bench and raise an eyebrow towards Ryder.

"Yeah," Lin stated tersely.

"How about we go make some noise," Ryder suggested slyly, placing her hands on her hips.

Lin smiled brightly and quipped,"Sure... But only if you're down with fucking up the Rollerz.. Big time,".

"Oh, hell yeah!" Ryder exclaimed as she descended the steps she was occupying.

"Good, 'cause I have an idea," Lin mused.

Lin and Ryder began to make their way out of the church. They had approached Lin's white, blue stripped Voxel when Lin curtly turned towards Ryder and grinned.

"What?" Ryder asked, a bit uneasy at the omniscient look she was receiving from Lin.

"You two are adorable, by the way," Lin quipped as she unlocked the doors to the car.

Ryder smiled as she got into the passenger's side of the car. Ryder felt her brow furrow as she thought about what Lin had just said, _Wait... What did she just say?_ Ryder slowly turned towards Lin who was maneuvering the car out of it's space near the church. Ryder opened her mouth to speak as Lin turned towards her.

"You and Dex," Lin stated, grinning, "you two are the cutest thing ever,".

Heat rushed to Ryder's face and her mouth fell agape as she searched for a response.

"We're not...I-I-I'm not - I mean, we're just-," Ryder stuttered as she pushed some of her hair behind her ear.

Lin giggled lightly as pulled up to a red light. Lin gently laid her free hand on Ryder's arm, "Ryder, calm down sweetie, I know you and Dex are friends.. I just think your relationship is really cute," Lin chuckled as she returned her attention to the road. Ryder calmed down a little and regained her composure.

"Oh..." Ryder cleared her throat, "Oh, okay,".

They were both quiet for a while before Lin spoke up,"You two will be fuckin' in no time," Lin prophesied, glancing at Ryder out of the corner of her eye.

"Oh, shut up!" Ryder laughed, playfully shoving Lin.

"Ohhhh! You want him!" Lin teased.

Ryder gently bit down on her lower lip and glared at Lin.

Lin gasped, feeling Ryder staring at her, "Oh my God, you do!".

"Lin," Ryder giggled, "drive the damn car!".

"You guys are gonna' have some sexy babies!" Lin gawked as she swerved through traffic.

"Lin!" Ryder exclaimed.

"Okay, okay, I'm done," Lin smirked.

"Right..." Ryder mused, only semi-convinced. "So, what're we doing anyway?" Ryder asked as they pulled up to a car garage.

"The Saints have a connection with the owner of this garage - Samson," Lin explained, parking the car. "Some of our boys jacked a truck that was carrying some of the Rollerz's street racers." Lin explained further as she and Ryder got out of the vehicle and headed into the garage.

"So, I had Samson here," Lin gestured towards the semi-greasy mechanic standing next to the truck piled with cars, "rig up these cars with a shit load of Naus... So much, that if their cars get to a high enough temperature, they'll explode."

Ryder quirked an eyebrow, "You don't fuck around do you?".

Lin shrugged, "I want to get rid of these assholes as soon as possible,". "So anyway," Lin continued, "There's a race going down in Chinatown tonight and when Troy gets back from whatever it is that he and Dex are doing, you two are going to be involved,".

"Oh, fun!" Ryder quipped as she traced the decals on one of the racers.

"Very," Lin smirked, "but I know these guys, if you're in the lead for the final stretch, they'll hit the Naus and try to blow past you, and once they do that-,"

"Boom," Ryder finished Lin's statement.

"Boom indeed," Lin nodded.

Lin and Ryder made their way out of the garage. "The guys won't be back for a couple of hours, I bet," Lin started, "we need to kill some time,".

A sly grin appeared on Ryder's face as she sauntered towards Lin's Voxel. "We could... Go to a club or something," Ryder suggested hopefully.

"You just read my mind," Lin chuckled as the two of them hopped into the car and sped off down the street.

Lin and Ryder arrived at a near by night club quickly, although it was still early in the afternoon. The two girls danced and laughed until the sun went down. Ryder found a fast friend in Lin, and found it easy to talk to her. Ryder told Lin how she came to be with the Saints, and why she was so eager to pursue the Rollerz. Lin listened intently and informed Ryder that the Rollerz were nothing but "bitches and pussies" and "pussies on bitches". Ryder laughed at the statement, and made a note to remember it the next time she face a Roller.

Lin and Ryder made their way to the bar and ordered a few drinks.

"Aside from macho bullshit, they don't do much," Lin mused as she nursed a shot of tequila.

"Oh?" Ryder swirled a straw around in her cup, "I would think they were like, badass street racers,".

"Ha!" Lin scoffed, "They fucking wish they were. I'm surprised they even know how to aim a gun, let alone drive a car," Lin laughed, "they act like a bunch of second graders; You say ass - they laugh, you say tits - they blush. It's fucking ridiculous, a bunch of virgin car mechanics".

Ryder laughed and nodded in agreement. Just as she was about to comment, her phone buzzed to life and vibrated in her pocket. In one swift movement, Ryder extracted the phone from the pocket of her shorts and saw that she had a new message.

_Dex: Yo! Ry! You and Lin can stop shakin' ya asses now, we're outside!_

Ryder gasped as she shook her head and typed a quick reply.

_Ryder: Stfu. We're not even shakin' our asses anymore . _

_Dex: Aww, I missed it?_

_Ryder: Fuck u. ;)_

_Dex: Oh Ryder! :O If u wanted me, all u had to do was ask :D_

_Ryder: Shut uuuuuuppp!_

_Dex: Well bring ya asses outside!... It's hot._

Ryder chuckled as she looked up from her phone, Lin shot her an intrigued look.

"I bet I know who that is," Lin teased, leaning against the bar.

"Oh yeah?" Ryder snickered as her phone buzzed again.

_Troy: Hey, Ryder, we're outside._

_Ryder: I kno, Dex jus told me._

_Troy:... Wat? I was supposed to tell u! :O_

_Ryder: Aww.. Srry Troy ;o ... Lol_

_Troy: No.. no.. It's not ur fault... Ima kick his ass! _

_Ryder: Oh no! Don't kick his ass :P_

_Troy: Only cause u told me not to... But next time!.. Ohhh next time... His ass? Getting Kicked.._

_Ryder: Haha... Okayy Troy._

_Troy: Hey, its HOT... Wats taking you guys so long?_

_Ryder: UGH, we're coming man, dang!_

_Troy: K. Cool._

"Lin, it's time to roll," Ryder quipped as she hopped off of her bar stool. "Haha, you see what I did there? I said.. _Roll_, and you know.. The _Rollerz.._ Haha..." Ryder joked. Lin snickered and glared at Ryder. "Oh, not funny? That's not funny? Alright.." Ryder sneered as she and Lin approached the exit of the club. "That was fuckin' funny..." Ryder mumbled, as they walked outside into the humid night.

When Ryder and Lin got outside, there was a customized street car and leaning on that car, were Dex and Troy. Troy was sitting on the rim of the hood, flicking his cigarette while Dex was toying with his phone while leaning on the side of the trunk, facing the entrance to the club.

"It's about time," Troy muttered as Lin and Ryder approached them.

"Oh shut up Troy, you guys were barely out here for 10 minutes," Lin countered lazily, tracing the decals on the car.

"All I'm sayin is that you guys could've been out here way sooner," Troy attempted to plead his case. Lin groaned in annoyance as she continued to argue with Troy.

Ryder was too entertained by watching the two bicker to notice that Dex had strolled up behind her. Only when she felt a light pressure on the top of her head, did she tilt her head up slightly to see that Dex had rested his chin atop her head. Ryder snickered and turned her attention back to Lin and Troy.

"Do they always argue like this?" Ryder muttered in a hushed tone.

Dex snickered, "Only on occasions. Like you know... All the time,". Ryder giggled in response and watched as Lin continue her argument with Troy.

"You know what Troy, I don't give a fuck what you do anymore, just get the shit done! Can you do that for me please?" Lin exclaimed, throwing her hands up in exasperation. Lin abruptly ended her conversation with Troy as she turned towards Dex and Ryder. Her visage softened immediately as she took in the scene before her; Dex was no long resting his chin on Ryder's head but he was still behind her, and they were dangerously close. Dex's hand was in Ryder's as Ryder was toying with his fingers. Lin giggled as she overhead a part of their conversation; they were pointing out the "various flaws" in each other's fingernails.

"You see this?" Ryder began as she leaned back into Dex and tapped the fingernail on his index finger, "You got nubs for fingernails," she snickered as she looked up at him.

"Oh for real?" Dex gasped as he wrapped one of his arms loosely around Ryder's bare midriff and tickled her with the other. Ultimately, this lead Ryder into one of her infamous giggle fits. Dex chuckled and allowed Ryder to catch her breath. When Ryder looked up towards him once again he quipped, "See, if my nails weren't nubs, that probably would've hurt,". Ryder laughed and shook her head as she escaped his embrace.

Lin slowly sauntered over to the duo, reluctant to end their good time. "Ryder, you ready to make some Rollerz go 'boom'?" Lin grinned devilishly as she tossed the keys to the street car to Ryder.

Ryder caught the keys with ease and smirked at Lin. "Fuck yeah," she quipped as she went around to the front of the car.

"Cool, me and Lin are headin' back to the church, we still need to piece together some shit on these Baby Bangers," Dex scoffed as he and Lin advanced to Lin's car.

"Alright, let's get this shit started," Troy nodded as he climbed into the car aside Ryder.

"Hey Lin, can I drive?" Dex called after Lin as they approached her car.

"Fuck no," Lin laughed.

"Why not?" Dex whined playfully. Lin rolled her eyes as the two piled into her car and sped off down the street.

Ryder took that as her cue and got into the car.

As Ryder started up the car and pulled away from the night club, Troy leaned over next to her. "Yo, fuck whatever Lin said. You get me close enough to the fuckers, and I'll get them to blow," Troy explained.

"Even more fun," Ryder beamed as she zoomed through traffic, arriving at the race shortly.

The race was over as soon as it started. Ryder showed impeccable driving skill, and out maneuvered every car in the race; getting just close enough to each of them for Troy to provoke them into hitting their nitrous. Once all the racers had been obliterated, a thoroughly impressed Troy took the wheel and dropped Ryder off at home.

The aftermath of an intense street race and multiple shots of tequila don't hit you right away. Ryder learned that when she found herself passed out on the living room floor of her apartment, sound asleep.

* * *

_**Well? Did you like it? Love it? Hate it? Let me know! Review, review, review! Part 2 is on the way. :D**_

_**Side Note - **__Naus is another word I use for nitrous._  
  



	6. Ryder & A Roller Part 2

_**Drum roll please! I present to you lovely FanFic readers... Part 2 of 2! :D I was so anxious to write and finish this part, so here it is! Six days after the first part! :D So, without further ado... Here's Chapter 6! Hope you enjoy it and love it so much that you want to marry it... 'Cause I do ;)**_

_**P.S. - I supplied some Spanish translations at the bottom of the story... You might need 'em.  
**_

**Disclaimer:_ I claim ownership to nothing other than my created characters, plot, and situations._**

* * *

**Chapter 6: A Bond Between a Ryder and a Roller - Part 2.**

It had been weeks since Ryder and Lin had pursuing the Rollerz and they had made a lot of headway. Lin had got in good with a mechanic in the Rollerz, Donnie, who happens to be best buddies with some bald guy named Price, who's uncle, , calls all the shots. The way the Saints saw it, they had the Rollerz in their pocket.

Speaking of the Saints, Ryder had developed close relationships with the lieutenants. Namely, Lin, Johnny, and Dex. Lin and Ryder were like the best of girlfriends and soon found that they knew each other to the point where they couldn't hide a thing from one another.

To little surprise, Johnny and Ryder found themselves bonding over a shared love of attractive weaponry. Occasionally, they would embark on a few Vice King strongholds for fun; they counted each VK member they killed as a point and compared their scores on the way home. Currently the score of the winnings was 8-6, Ryder being the latter. It was all fun and games, however, (At the expense of the Vice Kings). Johnny even found solace in confiding to Ryder about the difficulties he faced in his relationship with R&B singer, Aisha. The fact that Johnny was dating _the_ Aisha, in itself, left Ryder in a state of veneration. Only once Ryder had met the singer whom she esteemed, was she able to calm down and give advice to her romantically-challenged friend. It didn't surprise Ryder, how Johnny didn't know how to express himself romantically. Killing was his primary nature, after all. Although Johnny was a god-awful romantic, he knew when people should be together, and to him, Ryder and Dex weren't moving fast enough. Gat made sure that they were aware of this... Every time the three of them were in the same fact that Dex and Ryder became nearly inseparable when they were together was obvious to everyone, even Julius.

Aside from all that, the Saints had gained a new member - Robyn. She had gotten tired of staying at home and decided that she had a lot to offer the Saints. Her canonization had gone just as smoothly as Ryder's, although she was not as passionate... Or as violent, for that matter. Robyn had gotten over her fear of guns, but she was still hesitant to get out on the streets. So, to circumvent this problem, Robyn works behind the scenes, planing assaults, managing Saint's territory, and handling financial issues. Robyn had quickly come to the realization that running a gang is a lot like running a company, but she had grown to love it and enjoyed being around the crew.

It was around 6 o'clock in the evening and Dex and Ryder were hanging around the church. Robyn was in the back, wrapping up some information and Ryder was waiting for her so they could head home. The church was pretty empty this day in particular, so Dex decided to keep Ryder company.

Ryder sat on top of an overturned bench, swinging her feet. While Dex leaned back next to her on the bench.

"So Dex!" Ryder quipped, shifting her position atop the bench. Ryder pulled up one of her legs and tucked it beneath her so that she had one leg hanging off of the bench, and the other under her.

"What's up, what's up?" Dex replied, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"So like... 'Dex' is short for something, isn't it?" Ryder inquired, swinging her foot idly.

Dex lazily turned his head towards Ryder, "Sure is,". Dex smiled as if he knew something she didn't. "I thought you would've figured that out by now, it's -",

Ryder smiled devilishly and leaned forward into Dex."_Dexter_," Ryder purred using her faint Latin accent to accentuate his name.

Dex grinned and raised an eyebrow, desperately trying to resist being slightly aroused by the sensual manner in which Ryder said his name. _So that's how she really wants to play this huh?,_ Dex snickered to himself, _Game on_. Dex and Ryder had been playing this little game for awhile now. Every time they were alone, one would try to out-tempt the other. Neither of them could recall exactly why or when it had started, but one thing they both knew - It was a competition. Their sexual tension was painfully obvious, and both of them were on the brink of collapse. A few more eyelash bats, lingering stares, and sexual innuendo, and someone is bound to give in.

Dex cleared his throat before he spoke, allowing a mischievous smirk to mask his facade, "Smart girl... So tell me," Dex paused, leaning in, inches away from her face, "how does my name taste?".

Ryder smiled and licked her lips, "I'm not sure..." Ryder placed one of her hands on Dex's abdomen and clutched his shirt lightly. "I think I need to say it a few more times to get a good taste of it," Ryder cooed, releasing her grip on his shirt.

Dex stirred a little at her touch and reached down to gently grab her hand. "I'm sure I can help with that," Dex spoke softly, caressing the back of Ryder's hand with his thumb.

Ryder nearly sunk into him when he grabbed her hand, but the thought of giving in to him prevented her from doing just that. _Asshole! Stop being all suggestive and shit! Play fair you... Sexy... Cabron! _Despite her inner frustration, Ryder couldn't help looking down at their hands and smiling. Ryder glanced up at Dex. Dex noticed her smile and tightened his grip on her hand, now holding her hand.

Ryder's eyes went wide for a second, then she quickly convinced her body to be in accord with her mind. Because what her mind wanted to say and what her body wanted to do? Two totally different things. Ryder straightened up, and let her leg drop from under her.

"Yeah? And how exactly could you help me?" Ryder asked, raising an eyebrow in piqued interest.

Dex laughed a little and bit down on his lower lip. "I can do a lot of things that you can't do... Anatomically speaking,". Dex chuckled as Ryder beamed from the reference to one of their many inside jokes.

Ryder giggled and hopped down from the bench with her hand still in Dex's. "Well now, you've been saying that for a while," Ryder began, gently swinging their joined hands back and forth, "one of these days we need to see just how much you can do.. Anatomically speaking," Ryder smirked, now holding Dex's hand with both of hers.

Dex laughed as he tugged Ryder closer to him. "One of these days soon," He smirked.

"Most definitely," Ryder quipped, loosening the grip on Dex's hand. Dex followed her lead and loosened his grip so that Ryder was only holding two of his fingers now. Ryder stepped back from Dex and pulled her lips inward. It was obvious that she had something to say.

Dex noticed this and, being the person that he was, he asked her about it. "What's on ya mind, Dubois?" He asked nonchalantly.

That was the perfect time for Ryder to pose her question but she was not used to being referred to by her last name. Ryder wiggled her nose a little before responding.

Dex snickered at the sight of her little gesture that he had grown fond of. "It's cute when you do that," Dex smiled and lightly poked the tip of Ryder's nose.

_He saw that?.. Oh yeah, I almost forgot that he actually pays attention to what I do... _Ryder grinned and cleared her throat, "So... Dexter," she began as she dropped Dex's hand and leaned against the bench. "You gotta have a last name too, right?" She asked hopefully.

Dex chuckled and crossed his arms over his chest, "Oh you want my government name, huh?".

Having been caught in her scheme, Ryder put on an adorable puppy pout face and stared up at Dex.

Dex threw his head back and stared up at the ceiling to avoid making eye contact with Ryder. "Nope, that's not gonna work on me," He cooed.

Ryder let out a little huff and approached Dex. When Dex lowered his gaze to look at Ryder she quickly reinstated her puppy pout, which caused Dex to playfully groan in dismay. Ryder stepped closer to Dex, closing the distance between them. In one swift motion, she wrapped her arms around his abdomen and laid her head on his chest.

"Please?" She drug out the word as a whining toddler would do when they wanted something they were denied.

Dex couldn't help but smile as he hugged the small of her back. It wasn't often that they really hugged or had close physical contact, but when they did, it always lingered for a while.

"As much as I would love to tell you," Dex started sarcastically, rocking Ryder from side to side, "I'd have to kill you if I did," he smirked.

Dex felt Ryder shift in his arms. Ryder had drew back a little and looked up at him.

"Oh come on!" Ryder whined, "We're like this!" she giggled as she brought one of her hands to her front and crossed her middle finger over her index finger, symbolizing their close relationship.

Dex shook his head facetiously,"Maybe so, but that's privileged information," Dex laughed.

"But you know mine!" Ryder argued, nuzzling up against Dex.

"True, but-," Dex began to counter but was interrupted by the sound of the door to the church opening. Dex and Ryder both caught in surprised, exchanged quick glares and released their embrace. The duo snickered amongst each other as they heard foot steps entering the church. Hastily, they assumed casual poses on the bench. The foot steps drew closer and soon it was revealed to them that Julius was the cause of the intrusion.

_Just when I was about to get what I wanted! _Ryder cursed internally as she narrowed her eyes at Dex.

_Haha, saved by the Jules_, Dex mused as he greeted Julius. "What's up, Julius,".

Julius grinned as he dapped up Dex, "What's happenin' playa, I figured I'd find yall here," he laughed.

"Oh yeah?" Ryder giggled.

"Hope I didn't interrupt anything," Julius grinned as he turned towards Ryder.

Ryder snickered and ran her hand through her hair, "You have no idea Julius - I was... I was...So close to the answer," Ryder mused dramatically, looking down at the ground. Dex chuckled, put his hand up to his temple, and shook his head.

"You two are somethin' else," Julius snickered as he was preparing to change the subject. "So," Julius started, redirecting his focus to Ryder, "Lin tells me that you're doing a helluva job on the Rollerz, keep it up Ryder,".

Ryder smiled, "Thanks, we-,". Just then her phone rang.

"That Lin?" Dex asked. Ryder checked the caller ID and nodded.

Ryder proceeded to answer the phone and greet her friend. "Hey Lin, what's up?" Ryder greeted cheerfully, but she didn't receive the same tone in return, as she normally would. Lin's voice sounded hushed, and forced. Ryder listened closely to the terse instructions that her friend gave: Meet her at the pool hall. Immediately, Ryder could sense that Lin was in trouble and concluded the phone call.

Ryder twisted her brow in anger as she shoved her phone into her pocket and felt the hem of her tight black tee to make sure that her gun was were it was supposed to be - it was. Ryder huffed and stepped away from the bench, her body was tense and all she wanted to do was find her friend. Knowing that Dex had felt her anguish, Ryder turned to him, confirming her suspicion.

"Be careful," Dex stated tersely. His expression would've been unreadable to most people but Ryder could see under his hard facade; he was serious, and sincere. Under normal circumstances, his grave tone would serve as a massive turn on, but as it would seem, the mood was lost.

Ryder nodded curtly and headed out of the church, she was nearly running by the time she reached her new, custom Voxel. It was a gift from Lin as she and Ryder had become the best street racers in Stilwater. The car was nearly identical to Lin's, save the fact that Ryder's was black, with a purple stripe and had purple underglow.

Inside the church, Julius and Dex could hear the screech of Ryder driving away from the church. Dex crossed his arms and stared down at the ground, chewing his tongue in annoyance. Suddenly, a heavy hand came down upon his shoulder and Dex turned to see Julius observing him.

"Don't worry about her... She'll be fine, playa," Julius reassured him, giving his shoulder a light squeeze.

Dex was silent for a moment before he flared his nostrils a bit and looked towards Julius. "Ryder or Lin?" He asked indifferently.

Julius donned a smug grin as he responded, "Shit, pick one. They both can handle themselves, they're soldiers," Julius paused as he removed his hand from Dex's shoulder. "But we both know who this is about," Julius smirked as he patted Dex on the back and headed out of the church.

Ryder arrived at the pool hall in moments and was contemplating a plan in the car. _If Robyn were here, she'd probably tell me to be... "rational", and not rush in. _Ryder though to herself, tapping the barrel her of purple plated GDHC.50 pistol. Ryder sighed as she opened the door and exited the vehicle.

"Fuck rationalism," Ryder muttered, moving her bangs out of her line of sight.

Ryder entered the pool hall to see that everything was eerily quiet, just as she suspected it to be. No patrons, no bartenders, no nothing. She had her gun drawn and lowered, expecting to be attacked from every angle.

"So," Ryder began, her voice echoing to what appeared to be no one, "The Rollerz are not only sniffing each others jock straps after races... But their gigantic pussies too?" Ryder taunted, pacing the hall. "Wow, sure knows how to pick 'em," She scoffed.

Adrenaline ensured that Ryder was keen to all her senses, as she picked up on a faint rumble behind her. Ryder spun around quickly to be greeted by a hefty Roller with a baseball bat. Ryder grinned smugly and shoved her foot into the stomach of the Roller, causing him to fall back into a table. Ryder sauntered over to him and aimed her gun at his temple.

"You're _never_ supposed to go to an ambush on an empty stomach sweetie..." Ryder chuckled as she pulled the trigger, killing the Roller on impact, "First lesson in Banger 101,". Suddenly, Rollerz were appearing all over the hall, much to the satisfaction of Ryder. "Finally," She sighed, cocking her pistol, "The party's fuckin' starting!".

Bullets rang through the air as Ryder dove behind an overturned pool table. Unfortunately, this spot was already occupied by yet another, Roller. Ryder quickly appeased the issue by snapping his neck and taking his weapon. Now wielding two guns, Ryder arose from her cover and began taking out the Rollerz, one by one.

Ryder groaned in annoyance as she performed a quick spin and drove a sharp kick into the ribs of a flanking Roller. "Same fucking tricks? Really?" Ryder sneered, as she finished him off.

Just when Ryder had thought they were all dead, she felt herself being lifted and slammed into a table. Everything went black.

Ryder awoke moments later in a poorly lit room. She felt her hands were restrained behind her, and she was sitting in a chair.

"Ryder? Ryder, wake up!" She heard a familiar voice calling out to her.

"Lin!" Ryder snapped back into reality at the sound of her friend's voice, "What the fuck is going on?" she asked, suddenly realizing their predicament. They were sitting juxtaposed to each other and were both tied to a chair.

"Fucking Rollerz," Lin stated tersely. "They found out I was a Saint," she grunted, trying to get comfortable in her chair.

"Heh," Ryder scoffed, staring up at the ceiling.

"Watcha thinkin'?" Lin grinned, taking notice to Ryder's aloof composure.

Ryder rolled her eyes playfully and look at Lin, "Dex is gonna be thoroughly pissed off at me," she stated, looking back up towards the ceiling.

"Yeah?" Lin giggled, "Why's that?".

"He told me to be careful," Ryder grinned, shifting in her seat.

Lin chuckled. "Oh yeah.. He's going to be upset with you,". Lin was silent for a moment as she gathered her thoughts. "You know," She started, turning back towards Ryder, "I think he really cares about you Ry," Lin sighed.

"You think so?" Ryder smiled. "Well, that's something good to think about,".

"Haha, yeah," Lin laughed, "we make a lot of friends - you and me," Lin joked, acknowledging their current situation.

"If that's not an understatement then I don't know what is," Ryder laughed wholeheartedly. It was funny how Ryder and Lin could always laugh about a precarious situation, obviously, this was the most inappropriate time to make jokes; they were being held captive by the Rollerz. But, surprisingly enough, they didn't really care at the moment.

Their laughter came to an end when the door opened and two men walked in. Ryder recognized one as being , but the guy he was with was just an every Roller... Although, there was something vaguely familiar about him that Ryder just couldn't name.

"Why look at you two," started, approaching the tied up Saints, "all wrapped up like pretty little presents,".

"It's like Christmas, ," The Roller snickered.

"How about you shut the fuck up before you lose your chestnuts then?" Ryder retorted in annoyance.

The Roller approached Ryder and squatted down before her. "You think you're gonna get that lucky twice? I made sure to wear a cup this time," He smirked.

_Twice?... Dios Mio... _Ryder's mouth fell agape as she realized who she was dealing with. It was the Roller from the night she met Troy and Julius.

"You hijo de puta!" Ryder hissed as she forcefully kicked the Roller in the shin and spat in his eye as he fell to the ground.

"Ha.. You're little boyfriends were pretty tough too," The Roller coughed, holding his sides, "but we took care of them just fine,".

Ryder narrowed her eyes, "What're talking about pendejo.." she more so demanded, than asked.

The Roller chuckled painfully, as he clutched his leg and staggered onto his feet, "Oh, you don't know?" He teased, "Your buddy with the gun? Smoked his ass.. Your other little friend? Five years, baby girl,"

Ryder's eyes filled with rage as she nearly hopped out of the chair, ready to charge at the Roller. He was saved by the rope restraining her. Ryder cursed angrily at the Roller, reciting words that would be a sin to recapitulate. Ryder was so enraged, and she couldn't believe what she had heard. Was Anthonio really dead? And Carlos in prison? It was too much to believe.

"Now, now," warned, "Is that anyway to treat an old friend?,".

"Go fuck yourself," Lin sneered.

"Well now, you two are a naughty pair of dolls, aren't you?" sighed. In the silence, the faint sounds of approaching police sirens could be heard.

"Looks like the cops are comin' ," The Roller announced.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," clicked with his mouth, "Come now," he gestured towards the Roller, "Let us dispose of these malfunctioning play things," Sharp scoffed.

"Oh shut the fuck up," Ryder groaned as she threw head back, highly irritated at this point. Lin giggled at Ryder's display, which caused a smile to form on Ryder's face. Their smiles disappeared quickly as a cloth was clapped over their mouths simultaneously. A strong, constant smell overcame Ryder and Lin as they felt themselves drift off to an unrelenting state of unconsciousness.

"Owww..." Ryder groaned, trying to shift positions in the cramp space she and Lin were occupying. It was dark, really dark, and the girls had been thrown into the trunk of Lin's car; they had been in there for at least thirty minutes and Lin had been obliviously kicking Ryder while she was unconscious.

"Owwww," Ryder groaned louder as she nudged Lin's leg.

"Oh.. Sorry," Lin mumbled, fumbling with the rope constraining her hands, "If only I could find my lighter...".

"What would your lighter do to help us?" Ryder sneered. Inundated in anger, Ryder forcefully kicked the roof of the trunk. The two girls were silent, leaving the sound of tires rolling over the road as their only comfort. Ryder sighed and stared into the darkness of the enclosed space.

"Lin, how the hell are we going to get out of her?" Ryder asked wearily.

Lin sighed, "I have no fucking idea...". Silence fell upon the girls again.

"Hey Ryder," Lin spoke hesitantly.

"Yeah?" Ryder simply answered.

"If..," Lin paused, trying to collect her thoughts, "If something happens, and I can't get out of here-".

"Shut up," Ryder quipped, shifting onto her back. "Don't talk like that Lin, we'll be okay.."

"But if we're not," Lin quickly countered, "I mean, if I'm not and you are.. You know how I always wear this braided bracelet, right? The one with my name woven into it?"

"Mhm," Ryder noted softly.

Lin exhaled deeply before continuing. "Well, Johnny gave it to me," She explained, "and if something happens to me, I want you to take it and give it back to him.. It's very special," Lin turned her head away from Ryder, as even amidst the darkness, she could feel Ryder's gaze.

"O-Okay.." Ryder muttered. "If something happens," She cleared her throat, "then I'll be sure to get it to him... I promise,".

"Thanks Ry," Lin sighed. Suddenly, all the noise from the outside had stopped; the wheels of the car were no longer rolling, and the sound of gravel rubbling under the car had ceased.

"Shit, I think we've stopped!" Lin exclaimed in a hushed tone. Male voices could be heard outside the car, approaching the trunk. "Is that... Oh my God, that's Donnie!" Lin exclaimed, "Follow my lead," she instructed as the lid to the trunk popped open.

"Lin?" Donnie gasped, his eyes widening as he saw Lin and Ryder tied up in the trunk.

"Donnie! Listen to me, I swear to God-" _Clack...Clack.._ In the midst of her explanation, Sharp shot Lin twice in the arm.

"Lin!" Ryder and Donnie shouted in unison, tears forming in Ryder's eyes.

"Take a deep breath and count to ten, Donnie.." advised.

"Count to ten?" Donnie exclaimed, "You just shot my girl!" He yelled.

"Yes.. It's tragic," Sharp expressed sarcastically, closing the lid to the trunk. Ryder heard the screech of tires speeding off in the distance, and felt a heavy jerk forward as the car was being pushed by an outside force.

"Lin.." Ryder, called, her voice shaky, "Lin.. LIN!" Ryder yelled, desperately.

"Cal-Calm down, we're gonna' get out of this," Lin spoke softly, grunting between words.

Ryder, only thinking of escaping at this point, frantically kicked at the trunk as the car plunged into the waterways.

"Heh... Did you hear that asshole Donnie?" Lin asked, her voice fading, "He.. He said I was his girl,".

Ryder giggled softly, and then realized that her friend had gone silent and blood had spread throughout the trunk.

"Oh God no.. LIN!" Ryder cried, as she inhaled deeply, held her breath, and used all her adrenaline to kick a dent in to trunk's door, cause it to fly open. The current of the water nearly forced Ryder out into the open water, but her hands were still tied up, and she would drown for sure if she didn't free herself. Using all her strength, Ryder pushed against the heavy waters and dug her heels into the sand covered, ocean floor. She leaned against the sharp bottom rim of the trunk and carefully lifted and lowered her body in quick motions, causing the rope the tear. Just as Ryder was about the swim up to the surface, a trace of blood flowed past her.

Quickly, Ryder spun around to see Lin's body gingerly floating in the trunk. Fighting back an onslaught of tears, Ryder swam the short distance to her friend's body, untied her hands, and gently tugged the braided bracelet off of her right forearm. Clutching the accessory tightly within her grip, Ryder realized that she would run out of oxygen soon, and swam as fast as she could to the surface of the water.

Soon, Ryder popped her head above the water, gasping desperately for air. She was relieved to see that she had popped up just near an old water irrigation pathway, and swam towards the docking area.

Exhausted, soaking wet, and on the brink of collapse, Ryder trudged up the pathway, and came upon a sidewalk along an empty road. Ryder allowed herself to fall back against a concrete half-wall. Ryder glanced down her side and saw the outline of her gun, Ryder put on a weak smile as she was grateful not to lose her favorite weapon. Ryder opened her hand cautiously, examined the wet bracelet, and placed it in her pocket. As Ryder was doing so, she realized that her phone had been completely unharmed.

"Thank God for Gorilla Glass, and waterproof phone cases," Ryder muttered wearily , as she slowly pulled out her phone and scrolled down to Dex's name. She spoke softly, but hastily as she described the situation to Dex and where she was located. Dex sounded tense and concerned, and Ryder could hear Robyn and Johnny commenting in a rage in the background; she figured that Dex had put her on speaker. Dex had handed the phone to Robyn, and instructed Ryder to stay on the phone with her until they made it to her location. Ryder did as she was told and calmly, but shakily, spoke to her sister; she described every little detail, from the pool hall, to what the Roller told her of their friend's fates, and to Lin dying in front of her eyes.

It wasn't long before Ryder felt and saw the rays of an ultra high beam that signaled that Dex and her sister had arrived in the Mag. Johnny had come along too, in fact, he had been the one driving. It explained a lot, seeing as how Johnny was driving a good fifty miles over the speed limit and he had hastily drove onto the sidewalk, instead of the road when he pulled up to Ryder.

Ryder slowly slid her touchscreen phone to it's off position, and before she rose her head, Dex and Robyn were upon her. Robyn fell to her knees at her sister's side and pulled her into a hug, Robyn could feel Ryder shaking, she had just come out of the water after all. When Ryder was free from her sister's embrace, she saw that Dex had handed his jacket to Robyn, and knelt down next to Ryder. Before she knew it, Dex had scooped Ryder up into his arms, and Robyn draped his jacket over Ryder's shoulders.

Unable to protest to her full extent, Ryder let out a low groan to express her disapproval of being carried.

Dex heard her and put on a small smile. "You don't have much choice in the matter, Ry.." He spoke softly as they climbed into the backseat of the Mag, Robyn climbed into the passenger's seat aside Johnny.

"How is she?" Johnny asked as he pulled off of the sidewalk.

While in the backseat, Dex was still cradling Ryder, and hugging her tightly. She was shaking less violently than she had been before, but she still needed body contact to help her warm up.

"Really fucking cold," Robyn sighed as she looked back towards her sister, "she might be sick in the morning... And aching.. But I think she'll be okay,". Robyn smiled gently as she reached her hand back and rubbed Ryder's knee.

Feeling her sister's touch brought a tiny smile to Ryder's face as she gave in to Dex's embrace and snuggled against his chest. Dex gave her a light squeeze as she slowly slipped her arms into his jacket that was still draped over her torso. They had a long drive to conquer, as had taken Ryder a long way from home; the ride was observed in silence.

That silence was broken quickly however, as the car filled with the sound of Ryder's quiet sobbing. She had been fighting back tears since she got out of the water, and she couldn't hold it any longer, she was terribly upset. She had lost three of her best friends, by the same assholes. Carlos wasn't dead, as far as she knew, but he was still lost to her, as he was stuck in the Stilwater Penitentiary.

Johnny heard Ryder's sorrow and shook his head in anger as he swerved violently through traffic. "We're gonna' kill every last one of those muthafuckas.." Johnny hissed gravely.

Dex looked down towards the crying woman in his arms as he felt the wetness of her tears seep through his shirt. With one last squeeze, he hugged Ryder tighter and placed a soft kiss on the top of her head.

* * *

_**Whoop - There it is! I promised drama, I gave the drama - I like to keep my promises ;). Now, I shall bid you adieu... I have to get to work on Chapter 7! **_

_**Spanish Translations:  
**_

_**Cabron - Asshole  
**_

_**Mios Dio - Oh My God  
**_

_**Hijo de Puta - Son of a Bitch  
**_

_**Pendejo - Motherfucker, stupid.. etc.  
**_


	7. Calm Before the Storm

_**Here's chapter 7 and there's still more to come! I hope you guys enjoy it! Also.. I just want to let you all know that I really appreciate all the views, reviews, and alerts you guys are giving me, it makes me so happy to see that you guys are enjoying the story! Anyway.. Enjoy the chapter! :'D**_

**Disclaimer:_ I claim ownership to nothing other than my created characters, plot, and situations._**

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**Chapter 7: Calm Before the Storm**

The next morning, Ryder woke up to the sounds of voices, deep voices, subtly sounding through her bedroom walls. She couldn't make out what they were saying, but she identified one as being Johnny's. There was another male in attendance, whose voice was not as deep, but who could still be heard as an unintelligible mumbled through the thick walls. A female, there was a girl there too, Ryder assessed, as the girl's voice was significantly lighter than her male counterparts and was barely audible under their voices. Judging from the direction of their voices, the trio were conversing in the living room.

Ryder slowly opened her eyes and yawned. She had fallen asleep in the car last night and she didn't remember much from the ride. She figured that someone had carried her to her room because she didn't recall walking up three flights of stairs in her condition. Speaking of her condition, Ryder felt the aftermath of being slammed onto a hardwood floor immediately as she attempted to sit up on her bed.

"Oww.." Ryder hissed, throwing a hand over her aching side. Ryder glanced down to see that her clothes had been changed, and she still had on Dex's jacket. Ryder put on a small smile and glanced over towards her night stand. Her gun, phone, and Lin's bracelet were there. _Robyn must have cleaned out my pockets,_ Ryder assessed. Ryder shuffled around her bed slowly as she sat up against her headrest. She took notice that the voices outside her room had quieted down; Ryder listened as the front door of the apartment opened, and closed again, as if someone had entered or left. Ryder pulled her knees up to her chest as small foot steps made their way to Ryder's room, followed by a light knock on her door.

"Come in..." Ryder groaned, gazing towards the door. The door slowly opened just enough for Robyn to poke her head in.

"How ya feeling?" Robyn asked as she entered the room and closed the door behind her.

"My sides ache," Ryder answered tersely. Robyn chuckled lightly and took a seat at the edge of Ryder's bed. Ryder smiled weakly, "I am really comfy though," she mused, referring to the jacket she had on.

Robyn smiled,"I bet you are,". Robyn was quiet for a moment. She had come in initially to make sure Ryder was coping well with the loss of Lin, but she wasn't sure how she should approach the subject.

Ryder examined her sister's distant demeanor and she could see that something was on Robyn's mind. "Watcha thinkin' about sis?" Ryder inquired.

Robyn shifted her position on the bed, brought her legs up, and crossed them under her. "I was just thinking," Robyn began, "we're all going to miss Lin so much,".

Ryder looked down at her knees and nodded her head slowly, "Yeah, we definitely are... But we're gonna make those bastards pay," Ryder swore.

Robyn nodded as she turned towards her sister. "So," Robyn sighed, "you think what that asshole said was true?". Ryder knew who she was referring to, the cause of all this, the Roller that had wanted a dance from Ryder that night; _The same fucker that killed Tony, and got Carlos locked up, _Ryder cursed in her thoughts.

Ryder sighed and looked at Robyn,"Yeah, I do," Ryder shook her head slowly.

Robyn sighed in defeat as if her last shred of hope for good news had been stripped away. "Fucking unbelievable..." Robyn hissed.

Ryder nodded her head in silence, wanting desperately, to change the subject.

"So," Ryder started, "who's out there?" she inquired, jutting her head back towards the wall that separated her room from the living room.

Robyn smiled, "Just Gat. Dex just left. He said he had to talk to Julius about something,".

"Yeah?" Ryder quipped, straightening her position on her bed.

"Mhm," Robyn nodded, "We were worried about you," Robyn paused for minute, "Well, Gat knew you would be okay," Robyn chuckled.

Ryder giggled and stretched out her legs, " So, we going to the church?".

"If you're up for it," Robyn shrugged.

"You know I am," Ryder beamed, "just give me a minute to get cleaned up, and I'll be right out," Ryder quipped, inching to the edge of the bed. Robyn nodded and headed out of Ryder's room, she could hear Ryder shuffling towards the bathroom behind her.

Robyn entered the living room and smiled a lazy smile at Johnny who was sitting on the couch, hunched forward.

"She comin' or what?" Gat quipped, clasping his hands together.

"You already know she is," Robyn chuckled, flopping down on the couch next to Gat. A few moments later, Ryder appeared, exiting the bathroom and shuffling her feet slowly down the hallway towards the living room.

"Mornin' Sunshine," Gat snickered as Ryder entered the room. Ryder still donned Dex's jean jacket. It was getting colder outside so she had on a pink hoodie with white drawstrings, of which she tied into a cute little bow. She also had on a pair of faded, ripped, skinny jeans, light pink combat boots and some silver hoops. Ryder really didn't want to draw any attention from rival gangs today, so she decided to tone down the purple, but she did have her gun securely tucked in her jacket pocket - just in case.

"Johnny!" Ryder sang as she approached Johnny, who was now rising from the couch with outstretched arms. Ryder giggled and walked into his embrace. Gat squeezed Ryder lightly, careful not to cause her pain.

"You feelin' alright?" Gat asked, as he released his grip on Ryder.

Ryder nodded and smiled. "A little achy here and there, but I think I'll live," She chuckled.

Gat threw his hands in the air in relief, "Well that's fuckin' great, we don't need you cryin' and shootin' at the same time," Gat joked.

Ryder gasped and smiled brightly at Gat, "Oh shut the fuck up!" she laughed as she punched Gat in the arm.

"Damn!" Johnny hissed, "I see your arm ain't fuckin' achin'!" he laughed, rubbing his arm. Ryder snickered as she turned to see that Robyn had picked up the car keys on the counter.

"Let's roll out you two!" Robyn announced, jiggling the keys as she sauntered out of the apartment.

Johnny shrugged, "Well, you heard the lady," he snickered, gesturing Ryder towards the door, as if to say, "ladies first".

Once they got to the church, it seemed like everyone had something to do except for Ryder. Robyn headed straight into the church to manage the Saints territory revenue, and Gat had snuck off somewhere without Ryder noticing.

Ryder was just lounging around the car when she remembered that she still had Lin's bracelet. Ryder patted her pocket and found that the bracelet was securely tucked within. Ryder pulled it out and clutched it in her hand as she scanned the area around the church, looking for Johnny. Ryder began walking around the perimeter of the church, she was sure that Johnny hadn't gone inside.

Ryder was ready to give up the search until she got to the east side of the church, scattered with tombstones. It was where all the canonizations took place. Ryder smiled as she remembered her own initiation. Ryder's train of thought was lost, however, when she caught a glimpse of Johnny sitting on the steps.

Ryder sighed in content as she stuffed her hands in her jacket pockets and headed over towards Johnny. Johnny lifted his head as Ryder approached and smirked.

"Just couldn't stay away, huh?" Johnny joked as Ryder sat down on the step next to him.

"It's like a force just keeps pulling me to you and I can't fight it!" Ryder gawked sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"You know there are so many dirty jokes about my dick that I could say in response to that," Gat laughed as he leaned back on the step and placed his hands behind his head.

Ryder laughed and shook her head,"And I'm sure you wouldn't hesitate to share them with me, but?" Ryder waited for his explanation.

Johnny sighed and rolled his neck lazily towards Ryder. "I guess I'm just not in the mood, you know," Johnny shrugged, putting on a faint smile.

Ryder nodded curtly in understanding. They had only lost Lin just last night, it was sure to have an affect on everybody. Ryder huffed playfully and nudged Johnny's arm. "I got something for you," She stated simply, smiling as she reached into her pocket.

Johnny perked up a little, "Word? You know I love surprises," he chuckled.

"Don't I know it," Ryder nodded as she pulled her hand out of her pocket, bracelet in hand. Ryder watched as Johnny's facade transitioned from excited to disbelief then to pure happiness. Ryder smiled brightly and giggled a little as she hand Johnny the bracelet.

"She made me promise to get this back to you," Ryder admitted, "and you know I keep my promises,".

Johnny ran a hand through his upright hair and smiled at Ryder. "Don't I know it," He snickered, lightly fingering the woven bracelet.

Ryder stood up and was preparing to ascend the steps when Johnny suddenly got up and pulled her into a massive hug.

"Thanks Ry, this means a helluva lot," Johnny said, rocking Ryder back and forth. Ryder wrapped her arms around Johnny and returned his embrace. She hadn't really noticed it before, but Johnny was so much bigger than her! The realization made her laugh a little.

Johnny felt Ryder's light giggle vibrate through his torso. Johnny grinned and looked down at Ryder, "Watcha laughin' at?" he asked.

"You're so big!" Ryder giggled as she released her hold on Gat.

Johnny put on a mischievous grin as he released Ryder, "You think I'm big, heh, wait until you see Jimmy,".

"Jimmy?" Ryder questioned.

Johnny quirked up an eyebrow and simply said, "Eight inches,".

"Aha!" Ryder exclaimed, "There's the cock joke that we've all been waiting for!". Both Johnny and Ryder felt the need to laugh at that. Johnny caught his breath and turned to walk down the steps.

"Hey I got some shit to take care of, you gonna be alright here?" Gat asked as he descended the steps.

"Yeah, I'm just gonna go inside and wait for Dex to finish talking to Julius," Ryder stated, pointing her thumb back towards the church.

"Ohh, Dex," Gat mused, "have fun," he sang, chuckling mischievously.

"Oh hush!" Ryder dismissed him with her hand and entered the side door of the church.

Inside the church there were a few Saints scattered throughout, talking quietly among themselves. Normally, if the church wasn't deserted, it was lively and loud, but given the circumstances, it was a sad day to be a Saint.

"Hey," Ryder called out to one small group of Saint recruits, talking in a corner, "Have you guys seen Dex?".

"He's in the back with Jules - I mean Julius," A young Saint answered.

Ryder smiled, nodded her head in appreciation, and rounded a corner that lead to the back office of the church. Orange light shone through the open office door and Ryder could hear voices. Cautiously, Ryder crept up to the doorway of the office and hid herself in a tight corner that connected a wall to the doorway. It was against Ryder's better judgment to eavesdrop, but she had a feeling that there was something that Dex and Julius were talking about that she needed to hear. Besides that, however, Ryder just honestly didn't feel like waiting for them to finish their conversation for her to be able to talk to Dex.

Ryder peered into the office, just to make sure she was eavesdropping on the right people. From her angle, she could see them, but they couldn't see her; which was absolutely perfect for this situation. Although Ryder had the advantage with her hiding spot, she still didn't want to be too bold and get caught because she could clearly see Dex and Julius inside talking.

Dex was situated on the corner of a desk with his arms crossed. He was, obviously, really irritated. Since Ryder had his infamous jean jacket, he donned a black hoodie with purple drawstrings and a purple marijuana leaf on the front of it. Ryder smiled and shook her head in mock shame, although she did like the look of Dex in a hoodie. His jean jacket never really did his body any justice, he was a lot more muscular than his jacket made him out to be. It was a bit more apparent now however, and Ryder, of all people, seemed to appreciate that.

Julius was in his normal attire, nothing out of the ordinary. He was standing off to the side of Dex, but in front of him. He seemed to be trying to reason with him. Just when Ryder thought she was lost as to what was going on, the men began to talk.

"Dex, I couldn't stop her if I tried, you know she's gonna' be out for blue blood," Julius stated.

"And you know they're gonna' be out for purple blood - Ry's purple blood," Dex countered quickly.

_They talking about me? Why would they be talking about me? _Ryder wondered as she pressed up closer against the wall, as if she would hear them better.

Julius stepped closer to Dex and sighed. "She ain't alone in this playa and as long as Sharp is still out there shit ain't gettin' any better -".

"Then Sharp needs to die," Dex cut Julius off gravely.

"That's one thing we can agree on, but you can bet your ass that Ryder's gonna' want to be the one to take him out, and I'll be damned if I'm the one to tell her she can't," Julius stated, chuckling a little.

Dex let out a laugh and shook his head at Julius, "Shit, I hear you. Who knows what that girl would do if you told her she has to miss out on the fun," he snickered.

"Exactly," Julius laughed.

Dex sighed, and put his hands in his pockets, "I just don't want to see her hurt like that again, you know," he reluctantly admitted.

Ryder, still outside the door, felt her mouth gape open for a second. Ryder quickly shut her mouth and tried to suppress a toothy grin from spreading across her face. _Oh my God... Dex... Cares about me! _Ryder nearly exclaimed with excitement as she processed the thought and tried to calm herself down, _Well, I mean, I already knew he cared about me but you know.. Not that much to actually want to protect me I mean - _Ryder's thoughts were soon interrupted. Ryder was a bit relieved when she heard Julius talking again inside the office, she had begun to ramble within her own thoughts.

Julius cleared his throat, "I understand playa'. Let me tell you this though: As long as I'm still standin', none of them muthafuckas are gonna' hurt ya' girl," Julius swore.

_Awe, sweeet! _Ryder gushed, forcing herself to not say anything. _Wait, what did he say I was? OH MY GOD, Julius said I was Dex's girl... I'm gonna' faint, I just know it. If Julius said it, then it must be true! _Ryder nodded her head in validation as she turned her attention back towards their conversation.

Dex's demeanor calmed down again, then his brow furrowed and he quirked an eyebrow up at Julius as he realized what he had referred to Ryder as.

Julius caught Dex's look and laughed. "Oh don't give me that look, I've seen how you two are together," Julius said, crossing his arms, giving Dex an all-knowing look.

Dex snickered and rubbed his chin, "Man, don't you have some authoritative shit to take care of?" Dex asked, attempting to dismiss the conversation.

"Haha, I can take a hint playa', I'll back off the subject," Julius laughed as he patted Dex on the back, "but as a matter of fact, I do have some shit I need to attend to, I'll talk to you later playa',".

Dex grinned and saluted Julius, and with that Julius left the office through another exit. Dex was leaning against the same corner of the desk, massaging his palms when Ryder hesitantly entered the room. Ryder had decided when Julius left, that she wanted to talk to Dex. She wanted to know what they were. Sure they flirted here and there but they weren't anything official. Ryder figured that if he cared so much about her, and she obviously had feelings about him - being the type of people they were, they should do something about it.

Dex lifted his head and grinned at Ryder as she approached him. "Ryder, Ryder, Ryder," Dex stated tersely, easing off the desk. "Tell me," He continued, standing up straight and closing the distance between himself and Ryder, "how long have you been listening out there?" he asked, jutting his head towards the office doorway.

Being caught dead in her scheme, Ryder giggled and clasped a hand over her mouth. Dex laughed and gently removed Ryder's hand from her mouth.

"How the hell did you know?" Ryder asked, genuinely dumbfounded.

Dex smiled and twirled Ryder's hand around in his. "I saw Robyn a few minutes before you came, she said you were outside - Long story short, I knew you were going to come into the church and I knew you couldn't resist being nosey," Dex explained, grinning at Ryder, "I just don't know how long you've been there,".

Immediately noticing her advantage, Ryder smiled up at Dex. "Sooo.. You don't know what I heard?" Ryder asked, continuing to allow Dex to twirl her fingers between his own.

"I don't suppose you'll tell me?" Dex asked hopefully.

Ryder swiftly laced her fingers between his and held his hand, "I heard enough," she teased.

"Yeah?" Dex let his gaze scan Ryder's face, his gaze settled on her lips then traveled up to her eyes, which had transitioned to being a dark, emerald green. Ryder had parted her lips and was about to say something when Dex quickly cut her off, "Ry, what are you feeling right now?" he asked, still looking at her eyes.

Ryder tilted her head a little and quirked an eyebrow at him, then with a sly grin she said, "Do you _really_ want to know what I'm feeling?".

"Ohh, when you say it like that, I definitely do," Dex snickered, "but I'm asking 'cause your eyes are green, we're supposed to be keeping up with that shit," Dex pointed out, as he used his free hand to tilt Ryder's chin up, aligning her facial features with his.

At this point, Ryder had a hard time maintaining her composure. It seemed as though Dex always knew what to say or what to remember that caught Ryder off guard. Luckily for her, Ryder had become pretty good at masking her surprise.

"So guess my mood," Ryder whispered boldly.

Dex grinned and accepted her challenge, "I think I have a pretty good idea... But I'm better at demonstrating than explaining,".

Dex gently held Ryder's chin in place with his thumb and index finger, leaned down, and pressed his lips softly against hers. Dex pulled away shortly, receiving a groan of disapproval from Ryder.

"Did I guess right?" Dex asked, moving his hand from Ryder's chin, to caress the outline of her jaw.

Ryder gasped and simply looked at Dex for a moment. A grin spread across her face as she used her free hand to travel up Dex's torso, to his collar and grip it lightly. "You guessed exactly right, now guess again," Ryder demanded as she pulled Dex by his collar.

"Yes ma'am," Dex snickered as he swooped down and locked lips with Ryder once again. Ryder snaked her hand out of Dex's grip, for he was still holding onto it, and wrapped both of her arms around his neck, pressing her body against his. In response to her body heat, Ryder could feel Dex smiling against her lips and used that as an opening. Ryder swiftly slipped her tongue into Dex's mouth and received Dex's in return. Dex rested his hands on the small of Ryder's back and pressed her closer to his body. He explored her mouth with his tongue to the fullest extent, extracting a slight moan from Ryder in return. Reluctantly, the two pulled away from each other. The human necessity to breathe had betrayed them, for they had nearly ran out of breath in the midst of their kiss. Ryder giggled as she looked up at Dex.

"I guess what Julius said was true," Ryder stated, caressing Dex's jawline, cupping his chin.

"And what did he say?" Dex inquired, taking Ryder's hand that was on his chin into his hand and kissing it lightly.

Ryder looked at her hand in Dex's and smiled brightly, "That I'm your girl,".

Dex laughed and hugged Ryder tight, "Shit, you are now,".

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**_And there is your Chapter 7! Chapter 8 is on the way. So until next time, review, review, review! ;)_**

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	8. New Union, Sporadic Faces

_**Okie Dokie. Here's Chapter 8 :) I don't have much to say lol, but please review if you like it. Even if you don't, feedback would be awesome!**_

**Disclaimer:_ I claim ownership to nothing other than my created characters, plot, and situations._**

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**Chapter 8: New Union, Sporadic Faces**

Ryder and Dex stayed hugged up in the office for a while; Dex was still on the corner of the desk and Ryder was leaning forward onto him with her arms around his waist. Ryder looked up at Dex, gave him a quick peck on the lips, and smiled. Dex grinned and tightened his arms wrapped around Ryder. Just then, an idea popped into Ryder's head - There was something that she wanted to do for a long time, and she saw now as the perfect time to do it.

Ryder put on a sly grin and tilted her head up at Dex. "Oh Dexter," Ryder purred.

Dex quirked up an eyebrow in interest. "What's up?" Dex asked, clearly drawn in by the sultry tone of Ryder's voice.

Ryder noticed the expectancy in his voice and smiled mischievously. _I got 'em right where I want 'em_, Ryder confirmed as she laid her head against his chest.

"So I noticed your Raycaster outside when we got here this morning," Ryder started as she traced her finger in a circular pattern on Dex's chest.

Dex snickered and relaxed one of his hands on Ryder's hip. "What are you trying to get, Ry?" He asked, smiling, knowing that she was up to something.

_Damn, he knows I want something!_ Ryder thought, realizing that her true intentions were close to being discovered. _Hmph, it doesn't matter, I can still get what I want,_ Ryder assessed.

"You know," Ryder began, wrapping her arms back around Dex's midriff, "you should definitely let me take it for a spin," Ryder suggested, glancing up at Dex.

Dex laughed and eased off the desk. "So _that's _what you want," Dex chuckled, slowly guiding Ryder backwards towards the doorway.

Ryder nodded, allowing Dex to guide her body as she cautiously walked backwards. "I've wanted to try my hand at it for forever," Ryder confessed.

Dex licked his bottom lip and bit down on it."And here I was thinking that you wanted something else," He said, still guiding Ryder out of the church.

Ryder giggled and tightened her hold around Dex. "I mean, I'll take whatever you're offering though," She insisted, allowing her gaze to settle on his lips.

Dex laughed, stopped walking, and looked down at Ryder. "You are something else, you know that," He quipped, moving a strand of hair out of Ryder's face.

"So I've been told," Ryder smiled.

Dex and Ryder were now in the doorway of the east exit of the church, still in their embrace. Dex leaned against the doorway and glanced down at Ryder who was looking up at him with a pleading expression.

"Aww," Dex cooed, sticking his bottom lip out in a mock pouting expression. Ryder ignored his playful cynicism and batted her eyes at him.

"You know I'm like one of the best street racers in this city...I _think_ I can handle your car," Ryder tried to reason.

Dex rubbed the back of his neck and hummed subtly in thought. "I don't know Ry, you know I love my car and plus - I've never seen you race for myself," He shrugged.

Ryder unwrapped her hands from around Dex, rested them on his sides, and firmly clenched the sides of his hoodie. "You mean to tell me," Ryder started, quirking an eyebrow up at him in disbelief, "that you think that a girl named _Ryder_ can't drive?" Ryder scoffed, emphasizing the irony in her statement.

"You know what, you got it," Dex snickered, throwing his hands up in surrender. "But if something happens to my ride-," Dex was preparing to go on a tangent of consequences when Ryder popped up on her tippy-toes and locked her lips with his. Totally caught off guard, Dex decided to play on one of Ryder's weaknesses; he was _never _supposed to be caught by surprise, it was his thing.

Ryder was ready to end their exchange when Dex broke away first and began sprinkling kisses along her jawline, leading down to her neck. Ryder gasped in surprise as her eyes sprung open and she went into one of her infamous giggle fits. Ryder was extremely ticklish, virtually everywhere, and Dex knew that all too well as he nipped gently at Ryder's neck.

"Ah!" Ryder yelped as she threw an arm around Dex's neck and placed her free hand softly on his face. "Stop man! This ain't fair," Ryder laughed, knowing that he was attempting to one up her interruption. Dex glanced up at Ryder's plea and grinned as he lead a hot trail of kisses from her neck, back up to her jaw and along her cheek. He topped off his assault with a full, open mouthed kiss on Ryder's mouth.

"Mmm, you cheater!" Ryder chuckled as she held out her hand. Dex reached into his pocket and pulled out his car keys. He reluctantly placed the keys in Ryder's hand, but not before he melodramatically kissed them goodbye.

"I cheated but you still won," Dex laughed, shaking his head in mock shame.

Ryder smiled and cupped Dex's face in her hands,"You're right," she quipped. Dex groaned playfully as Ryder grabbed his hand and headed out into the east courtyard of the chuch.

Once they got outside, they noticed that Troy and Robyn were out near the front of the courtyard. They were sitting on the front bumper of Troy's car. Ryder's brow furrowed into a quizzical look as she gazed towards Troy. _Where the hell has he been?_ Ryder looked up at Dex who returned the same dumbfounded facade.

Troy had been M.I.A as of late. It was horrible timing too; when the Saints weren't preoccupied with the Rollerz or other gang strongholds, the police came cracking down hard on the bangers. All the while, Troy was like a ghost; nowhere to be seen but made his presence known after something major went down.

Ryder jerked her head towards Troy and Dex responded with a shrug. With that, Ryder gave Dex's hand a little squeeze and began to walk over towards her sister and Troy.

Robyn's expression brightened as Ryder and Dex approached, hand in hand.

"Awww, yay!" Robyn squealed, taking in the new couple.

Ryder giggled at her sister's reaction. Robyn always enjoyed new couples, and she cried at every single wedding she had attended. Ryder was well aware of this and gave Dex a look that said "here it comes, get ready". Dex read that look clearly, and in response he chuckled and prepared for impact; and Robyn sure knew how to bring the fluffy impact.

An excited Robyn grabbed Troy's arm and pushed him gently, trying to get him to turn towards the couple.

"Troy look who finally got together" Robyn exclaimed.

Troy laughed and turned his head back to face Ryder and Dex who had stopped holding hands at this point.

"Well, well, well," Troy started, wearing a wide grin, "hey you two," he chuckled.

Ryder smiled and rose an eyebrow. "Hey yourself Casper!" Ryder exclaimed, using the Casper reference to emphasize Troy's irregular schedule as a ghost. Ryder stuffed Dex's car keys into her, or his rather, coat pocket and sauntered over to Robyn's side.

Troy caught her joke and shook his head, flicking his cigarette. "Yeah, I missed you too Ryder," Troy sighed in good humor. Troy then turned to Dex, who he knew, had a smart remark regarding his absence already lined up. He was absolutely right in his assumption!

Dex grinned and extended his hand to Troy. "Nice of you to grace us with your presence," Dex remarked sarcastically as he and Troy dapped up in greeting.

Troy turned his head to the side briefly, and ran his tongue over his teeth, trying to think of a comeback. Unable to think of a witty retort, Troy turned back towards Dex and laughed wholeheartedly, accepting defeat.

"I get it, I get it," Troy said, holding his hands up in surrender, "but I had shit to take care of , you know,".

Dex grinned and nodded in understanding. Dex had a lot of doubts about Troy lately; there were a lot of things that just didn't make sense. He didn't spend too much time thinking on it, however. Dex just dismissed the thoughts as he was constantly reminded that Troy was one of his very good friends, and had been for a very long time. With that, Dex placed brotherly hand on Troy's shoulder and leaned on the bumper next to him.

With the topic of his disappearance being the topic, Troy was forced to think about what Julius had informed him of earlier that day - Lin was dead, and Ryder went through hell last night. With that at the forefront of his mind, Troy cleared his throat.

"How you feelin' Ryder?" Troy asked, running a hand through his dirty blonde hair.

Ryder looked up from her conversation with Robyn and sighed.

"I'm okay, Troy. Really," Ryder tried to assure him, donning a small melancholy smile.

"I'm uh... Sorry about Lin.. She was fuckin' awesome," Troy said sheepishly. His light humor managed to extract a genuine smile from Ryder, signaling that the tension in the air had been cleared.

Ryder resumed her conversation with Robyn when she caught sight of Troy and Dex in the corner of her eye. The two donned sly grins and were speaking in a hushed tone. Ryder was out of listening distance from them at this point and she could only imagine what they were discussing.

To her dismay, _she_ was the topic of review. But of course, that fact was one she was not aware of.

Troy sheepishly nudged Dex in the arm. "Well?" Troy asked, his one word question laced with anxiety, waiting for an unasked-for explanation to a situation that had not been stated.

"What?" Dex asked, clearly unaware of the explanation that Troy was expecting.

Troy's eyes widened as he hit Dex in the arm. "The hell do you mean, 'what?'?" Troy questioned, lowering his voice, "You and Ryder? That's one hell of an accomplishment, man!" Troy exclaimed, being sure to keep his voice down.

Dex's laughed cockily as he understood Troy's surprise. "You right about that one," Dex nodded, grinning widely. "It was a long time coming," He sighed.

"Shit. Yes. There's that - There's that, and the fact that Ryder is fucking _bad_," Troy cosigned, taking a drag of his cigarette.

_"_You ain't ever tell no lie," Dex laughed, quoting the chorus to one of his favorite songs.

Troy shook his head, "Lucky ass,".

Dex chuckled and looked towards Ryder. Ryder glanced up and caught his gaze. Knowing that he and Troy were up to no good, Ryder playfully squinted her eyes at Dex. Dex snickered and kissed the air childishly, as if to goad her. Ryder snickered and shook her head, resuming her conversation with Robyn.

Troy glanced over at the sisters, grinned, and proceeded to talk to Dex.

"You know Robyn is fucking hot too," Troy quipped.

"Oh yeah, definitely," Dex nodded then grinned at Troy as if he had just came to a realization. "Yo man, what were yall doin' out here anyway?" Dex asked, referring to the fact that Troy and Robyn were out here together in the first place.

Troy chuckled and got a tad bit red in the face. "Oh well we were just -" He started to explain when a pair of young Saints bursted into the courtyard and ran up to them.

"Rollerz," One Saint stammered, out of breath from running.

"Are... Coming," The other finished the statement, just as breathlessly as the former. Robyn heard the Saints and walked over to where the boys were with Robyn in tow.

"Wait, wha-," Dex started.

"What?" Ryder exclaimed, finishing Dex's thought.

"Wha- How... How do you know? Where are they coming from?" Robyn questioned eagerly.

Suddenly, all that could be heard was the revving of engines and screams coming from down the block. Ryder reached into her pocket and pulled out her purple plated GDHC.50 pistol which had undoubtedly became her favorite gun; for obvious reasons. The other Saints followed in suit, cocking their guns as the revving grow louder, which meant that the Rollerz were getting closer.

There were a ton of Saints still inside the church, so all Ryder and the ones outside had to do was, you know, kill everybody in blue.

Before Robyn could get any information out of the stammering Saints, the Rollerz were upon them. Tires screeched to a halt as numerous blue street racers bombarded the front entrance of the church.

Shots rang through the air, as stray Rollerz ventured into the east courtyard of the church, where Ryder and the others were located.

Dex rested his SMG on his shoulder and cocked his head to the side, "Invasion of the Hot Wheels," he snickered.

Ryder grinned and looked back at the Saints preparing behind her. "If Sharp is here," She started, turning away from the group, "_nobody_ lay a finger on 'em - He's mine," Ryder stated sternly as Rollerz poured into the courtyard.

All the Saints ducked for cover behind tombstones and trees as bullets sprinkled the ground around them. Ryder and Robyn both took to a nearby tree that overshadowed a section of the courtyard, one girl on either side of it. The two sisters picked off the Rollerz nearest to them, effortlessly, as a result of their impeccable marksmanship. Robyn was normally against using the pistol she kept tucked in her boot, but every now and again she did go with Ryder to Friendly Fire to brush up on her skill. "Just in case" She always said.

The guys were fairing pretty well themselves. They both took turns ending the lives of their blue adversaries.

"Damnit Troy!" Dex exclaimed from his position behind a tombstone.

"What?" Troy asked from a neighboring stone, shouting over the gunfire.

"You stole my damn kill!" Dex retorted with his back against the stone.

"You were reloading, man! He was _this close_ from gettin' your ass!" Troy said, measuring a small distance with his index finger and thumb. Troy groaned in annoyance at a Roller who had stumbled his way towards their cover spot, and shot him in the groin.

"Fuck that. That was a damn kill steal, man," Dex scoffed as he nonchalantly reached his arm back over the tombstone and quickly executed two approaching Rollerz.

The number of Rollerz was depleting fast, but they were still coming. As the Saints scattered around the courtyard turned battlefield, Ryder, Robyn, Troy, and Dex ended up colliding into each other by the same big tree that Ryder and Robyn occupied earlier in the firefight.

Ryder absently stumbled over Dex's foot as she stepped over a dead Roller next to the tree. Dex caught Ryder around the waist swiftly before she fell forward. Ryder looked up at her savior and laughed, resulting in chuckles from Dex, Robyn, and Troy.

"Hey, anybody got any extra clips?" Troy asked, "I'm out," he observed, clicking the trigger on his gun for emphasis.

"Shit, I'm out too," Robyn sighed, peeking around the thick trunk of tree, looking for oncoming Rollerz. "They're coming, they're fucking coming," Robyn hissed as she pressed her back against the tree. About a dozen Rollerz were in pursuit and about to surround the tree.

"How the hell did we all run out of clips at the same damn time?" Ryder sighed, gripping her gun by the barrel.

"I guess we're gonna have to get blunt," Dex shrugged, glancing around the tree. The Rollerz were getting closer.

"Eh," Ryder sighed, "I prefer it that way," she snickered, now in a squatting position.

The group of Rollerz could be heard snickering around the tree, it was about time for the Saints to get blunt. Always eager to get physical, Ryder poked her head out to face the Rollerz, but was quickly yanked back behind the tree when shots began ringing out through the air.

"Eep!" Ryder yelped as Robyn pulled her back down.

Soon, everything fell eerily quiet. No bullets even came close to marring the four Saints. They all shared confused glares as gunsmoke rose into the air.

"Who were they shooting at?" Robyn asked, "Because they sure as hell missed us,".

Troy snickered as a loud voice boomed through the courtyard, "Hahaha! Muthafuckas!". The whole group's jaw dropped as they emerged from behind the tree, that voice could only belong to the one guy they all knew would gladly take out a dozen Rollerz on his own.

"Johnny! Our hero," Robyn gushed, dramatically as they made their way to Johnny.

Johnny was on top of stairs, armed with an AK-47. With a cocky grin he bellowed, "I leave yall alone for a damn hour, and ya damn near get your asses smoked,".

Ryder shook her head and snickered. All around them were the bodies of dead Rollerz, except for one. Ryder squinted her eyes as she noticed a stray Roller attempting to limp away from the scene. She immediately recognized his face.

Ryder let out a slew of curses in Spanish as she snatched Johnny's gun out of his hand and jogged down the stairs. Before anyone could stop her, Ryder was already on the Roller.

Dex started to go down after her but Robyn stopped him with a gentle hand on his shoulder. Dex turned to Robyn to see that she was focused on the Roller.

"That's him," Robyn stated coldly. She could feel Dex's body tense up at her words.

"Shit. Are you sure?" Johnny asked.

"I'd know that ugly mug anywhere," Robyn nodded.

Ryder hoisted the Roller up by his collar and got him steady on his feet, just to bash him in the gut with the butt of the rifle. The Roller heaved and fell to the crown, holding his stomach. Ryder grinned, kneeled down, and looked down at the Roller who recognized her immediately.

"Holy shit," He gasped, eyes widening, "how the fuck are you still alive, Sharp took care of you!" he choked.

"Oh, I missed you too sweetie!" Ryder snickered, "We have got to stop meeting like this,".

Ryder examined the gun at her side and smiled at the fallen Roller.

"Do me a favor hun, and send Sharp a message for me," Ryder quipped, rising to her feet.

The Roller's face brightened as he looked up at her, "S-S-So, you're not gonna kill me?" he asked hopefully.

Ryder laughed and pointed the AK at the Roller's head. "Oh. Your gonna die," She assured him.

"Then how am I supposed to tell your message?" The Roller asked, utterly confused, and frankly scared as hell.

"You guys will meet again. He'll be joining you soon," Ryder quipped. "Anyway," She began, "make sure you get all this sweetie: Tell Sharp, that he fucked with the _wrong _chica," Ryder said sharply as she pulled the trigger, killing the Roller on impact.

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_**Whoop - There it is! Chapter 9 is in the works, pleeeaassee review! Please? Pretty please? (:**_


	9. Timing Is Everything

_**For this chapter I decided to allow you guys to get inside of Dex & Ryder's head for a moment, to see how they really view each other (: Hope you guys enjoy it! R&R!**_

_**Also.. This may be the last chapter I upload for a short time, I'm still on the fence about it. The story is far from over but an idea for a one-shot just popped into my head and I think I may go ahead and get it out of the way so I can be completely focused on Rough Ryder. :)  
**_

**Disclaimer:_ I claim ownership to nothing other than my created characters, plot, and situations._**

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**Chapter 9: Timing Is Everything**

Ryder lowered the gun to her side and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

"One down, one to go," Ryder sighed as she realized that footsteps were approaching.

Ryder turned slightly to see her four beloved Saints members upon her. Johnny, grinning widely, placed a heavy hand on Ryder's shoulder.

"Atta girl!" Johnny exclaimed, praising Ryder's actions. "You grow to be like me more and more everyday.. And..." He began to stutter, "It - It makes me so damn proud!" Johnny exclaimed dramatically, pulling Ryder into a hug.

Ryder couldn't hold back her chuckles as she struggled to escape his hold.

"Anything to make you proud!" Ryder scoffed sarcastically, rolling her eyes as Johnny finally released her. Johnny was becoming increasingly infamous for his unyielding hugs as of late, and to the fear of everyone - they were becoming more and more suppressing.

Ryder handed Johnny his gun and looked down at the dead Roller. "You know, I really shouldn't be mad at this kid," Ryder shrugged, gently kicking the corpse. As a result of her statement, Ryder was expecting the response she received: a puzzled look on all of the Saint's faces.

Ryder grinned. "If it wasn't for this asshole, we wouldn't be Saints," She explained, looking back at Robyn. A look that said, '_Ohhh yeaaah_' now replaced the confused looks on their faces.

"Ah!" Ryder yelped as a pair of arms wrapped themselves around her torso. As it would seem, Dex had attacked Ryder with a hug from the back.

"That means Ryder loves us yall!" Dex exclaimed, rocking Ryder back and forth.

Laughter and '_awws_ ' filled the courtyard.

"Well I would hope that she does love me," Robyn quipped, glaring at Ryder. "Because if not then I have to say that our whole life together can be seen as pretty damn awkward now," Robyn chuckled.

Ryder laughed and shook her head. "I love you lots, sis!" She quipped, reassuring Robyn.

"Good," Robyn nodded, whipping her brow in relief.

Robyn scanned the courtyard and made a clicking sound with her tongue, acknowledging all of the dead bodies that covered the ground.

"Who's going to clean all this up?" Robyn asked, looking at Johnny and Troy. Dex had released Ryder but they were now, apparently, lost in their own little world. They weren't paying any real attention to the others at this point.

Troy simply shrugged at Robyn's query, so Robyn turned her attention over to Johnny.

"Get some of the crumb snatchers to handle it," Johnny scoffed, referring to the youngest Saints.

"Oh, good idea!" Robyn nodded as she stepped forward and grabbed both Troy and Johnny by their arms. "You two need to come with me so I can seem intimidating," Robyn explained.

"Well, I _am_ pretty damn good at being intimidating," Johnny chuckled, " - if I do say so my self,".

Troy simply laughed and walked with Johnny and Robyn towards the church. As they got closer to the church, Robyn glanced back at Ryder and Dex and her eyes widened as she remembered a mental note she had made earlier.

"Oh, Johnny - I forgot to tell you the amazing news!" Robyn called after Johnny.

Ryder could hear Robyn in the distance and stared a widely at Dex. "Uh-oh..." Ryder gasped.

Quickly Dex caught on to Ryder's odd gaze. "Oh no..You don't think she- " He started, eyes widening.

Just as Dex started his statement, Johnny, who was atop the stairs of the church, made a sharp turn and ran down to Ryder and Dex.

"Oh. She did," Ryder confirmed as Johnny stood in front of the couple, wearing a huge smile.

"It's about damn time!" Johnny exclaimed, throwing his arms over the shoulders of Dex and Ryder.

"Oh Johnny. Robyn must've told you?" Ryder quipped unenthusiastically. Dex snickered at Ryder's uneasy demeanor.

"Why yes she did!" Johnny exclaimed. "And might I say that Dex you did a helluva job gettin' this one," Johnny chuckled jutting his head towards Ryder.

Ryder gasped and hit Dex on his arm as he laughed and nodded along with Johnny.

"Ah shh-" Dex hissed as he rubbed his assaulted arm.

Ryder crossed her arms and smirked at Dex.

"Ohhh, ouch," Johnny winced, sympathizing with Dex's pain, "I'll just leave you two to it then," Johnny chuckled as he turned to follow the others going inside the church.

Dex and Ryder were now alone in the courtyard and Dex's arm was still hurting.

"What was that for?" Dex asked, still rubbing his injured arm.

"I felt it was appropriate," Ryder shrugged, still smirking in her defiant stance.

Dex grinned and shook his head, "Awe, you're upset," he cooed.

Ryder snickered and placed a hand on her hip. "Oh no, I'm very happy," She assured him, "'cause I still got these," she grinned widely as she pulled Dex's car keys out of her pocket and dangled them in the air.

Dex's expression dropped as he opened his mouth to speak, but found him self speechless.

"Ah? Oh - Ah - Uhp?" Ryder mocked him every time he opened and closed his mouth, searching for something to say. Ryder clearly had something over him and he had no other choice but to surrender.

Dex sighed and lowered his head. "Okay," He muttered.

"Say what?" Ryder asked, leaning in as if she didn't hear him correctly.

Dex raised his head and narrowed his eyes at Ryder. "Okay you got it, let's just go," Dex muttered through clenched teeth.

Ryder grinned, feeling satisfied with Dex's submission. "That's what I thought you said," She quipped, grabbing his hand and heading towards the Raycaster.

Dex groaned in dismay as they approached his beloved car.

Ryder heard his despair and sought to appease the problem with a little reassurance. Ryder wrapped her arms around Dex's neck and tilted her head up at him.

"Oh hush," She snickered. "I'm not that bad of a driver, I promise," She assured him, sealing her promise with a soft kiss that brought a grin to Dex's face.

Ryder smiled and swiftly hopped into the car. Dex slowly opened the passenger side door and plopped down in the seat. By the time he settled in the seat, Ryder had already turned the key in the ignition and had her hands placed firmly on the steering wheel.

Dex slouched against the seat and absently fiddled with the radio dial as Ryder put the car in drive and began cruising down the street.

Dex placed his elbow on the passenger's door of the convertible and gazed out towards the passing scenery. He had to admit, he was happy that Ryder was as good of a driver as she had claimed to be. She handled his prized possession gracefully and maneuvered through the city with ease. It did feel weird though, riding shotgun in his own car.

"So?" Ryder spoke up, snapping Dex back from his thoughts.

"Hm?" Dex simply responded.

"Am I an awesomely great driver or what?" Ryder quipped brightly.

Dex chuckled lightly and turned his gaze to Ryder who was still focused on the road. "You're pretty smooth," Dex nodded nonchalantly.

Ryder glared at him as she pulled up to a stop sign. "'Pretty smooth'?" She repeated his words in disbelief. "Dex, don't deny my skill," Ryder huffed, as she waited for an elderly couple to cross the street.

Dex laughed as he tried to explain his compliment, "I wasn't denying your skill, I was just saying that you handle a car really well,".

"Mmhm," Ryder hummed in a condescending tone.

Dex smirked and rested his arm across the top of the driver's seat.

Ryder shook her head and pulled over into a vacant parking lot. She then lazily laid her head back on the driver's seat and turned towards Dex.

As if to read her mind Dex grinned and quipped, "Wanna switch sides?".

"Yes please," Ryder smiled as she and Dex simultaneously got out of the car and switched seats. Honestly, Ryder loved to drive, but only if stakes were involved. Civilian driving was more of a chore than she was willing to perform; there were way too many rules to follow.

Ryder sighed in content and shimmied around in her seat as Dex started the car up and pulled out of the parking lot.

"So where we goin' Dexter?" She asked, idly twirling her hair around her finger. Ryder giggled as she saw Dex glare at her for calling his by his real name. It had become a normality for Ryder to address him that way, however. The name just slipped naturally from her tongue, and although Dex disliked it, she couldn't really help it.

"Don't look at me like that mister," Ryder quipped, sinking down into her seat. "It's become a habit," she shrugged as she twisted a portion of her hair around in her hands.

"A bad one," Dex snickered.

Ryder sighed as she gazed at Dex. "I don't think so," She admitted with a slight shrug. "It adds a little flavor to my vocabulary, you know," She quipped.

"I think your vocabulary is flavorful enough," Dex laughed.

"Yeah? I think it needs a little more sauce," Ryder chuckled, pulling her knees up to her chest and hugging them, just to keep them on the seat.

They had been driving around the city for a while and were cruising along the coastline when Ryder noticed a cliff that leveled with the land. It sat right on the edge of the coast and overlooked the ocean.

"Oh! Dex, pull over!" Ryder exclaimed, gently clutching Dex's arm.

"If you insist," Dex shrugged. Dex effortlessly pulled the car over into the grass on the cliff. As a result, an excited Ryder got of the car as leaned back on the hood of the car, getting a good view of the ocean. She was soon joined by Dex, who hoisted himself up onto the hood of the car. Ryder looked back at Dex in envy. Dex noticed this and waved his hand, beckoning Ryder to join him. Ryder's face brightened as she hoisted herself up and scooted back on the hood to sit beside Dex.

Ryder leaned over into Dex and laid her head on his shoulder. Dex instinctively put his arm around her. Dex grinned as he felt the familiar touch of his jean jacket that now clothed Ryder. He was willing to let her have it if she really wanted it, she seemed comfortable enough. Dex glanced down at Ryder as he felt the fabric of the jacket move under his touch. He looked down to see that Ryder was gazing up at him and she looked like she had something to say.

"Watcha thinkin'?" Dex asked, rubbing Ryder's shoulder.

Ryder smiled mischievously, "I'm debating about whether I should tell you the new word I've added to my vocabulary,".

"Oh really?" Dex asked, raising an eyebrow, "What new word could you possibly add to your saucy dictionary? Do I even want to know?" he chuckled.

"Oh you already know it, sweetie," Ryder teased.

Dex tilted his head down at Ryder, truly intrigued.

"At least I hope you do... Mr. _Jackson_," Ryder purred.

Ryder donned a wide grin as she witness Dex's jaw drop at the mention of his last name. The last name that he had held over Ryder's head for so long. The last name that she somehow figured out. Dex was getting all figured out by this girl, it was as easy for him to play with her head as it was for her to win the game. Out of every female Dex had come in contact with, not another could he say truly kept him interested until now. She was persistent, very persistent and Dex was impressed, very impressed. He had begun to find himself constantly wondering what Ryder would do or say next, and so far, she hasn't ceased to leave him speechless.

Dex bit his lip in an attempt to suppress a smile that threatened to spread across his face. He inevitably failed, and let out a chuckle.

"Ryder how- I mean, who... Wow. Ryder, what question do I ask first?" Dex laughed, laying back on the hood of the car and bringing Ryder down with him.

Ryder giggled and laid her hand on Dex's abdomen. "Hmm," She mused, tapping her finger as if she was thinking. "You could start with 'Ryder, how the hell did you figure that out?'" Ryder concluded as she snuggled into Dex.

With one arm around Ryder, Dex placed his other behind his head. "Alright then," He started, "Ryder, how the hell did you figure that out?".

Ryder snickered as she reached into the denim jacket's pocket, pulled out a crumpled little piece of paper and handed it to Dex. Dex brought his hand from behind his head and opened it up. It was an old credit card receipt and of course, the owner of the credit card had his name printed on the receipt. Dex smirked as he balled up the little paper and tossed it to the side.

"I guess I gave you that one, huh," Dex quipped, resting his hand back behind his head.

"You sure did," Ryder laughed as she looked out towards the water. The sun was setting around that time and reflected onto the ocean.

"How beautiful is that," Ryder mused in reference to the sunset.

"It's nice," Dex shrugged.

Ryder glanced at Dex and grinned. "You're not into scenery I see," She snickered.

"I'm more into scenery I can physically appreciate," Dex smirked.

To anyone else, Dex's ambiguous nature would be a bit frustrating, but it always resulted in Ryder becoming more attracted to him. Ryder had a good bit of dating experience and in every situation she had been in with a guy, she found that she could easily take control of a situation and get the outcome that she desired. But this was different. With Dex, she had to figure him out and make him _want_ to let her win. He was way different from any other guy she had been with, and she liked it.

"Mm," Ryder hummed, "and what does that mean?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ryder shimmied upwards on the hood of the car so that she and Dex were leveled with one another.

She then wrapped an arm over his chest, as if to hug him while laying down. Dex casually adjusted to Ryder's change in position by moving the arm he had around her shoulder upwards, keeping her close.

"Let's see.. How can I explain this," Dex mused, bending one of his legs so that his knee was pointing towards the sky. "So you see that beautiful sunset, right?" Dex asked, gesturing towards the horizon.

"Yeah," Ryder nodded, allowing one of her legs to slip in between Dex's. Ryder pretended not to notice and gazed towards the sun up ahead. She could feel Dex's light gaze settling on her.

"Well," He continued, "I can't touch the sun or tell it how beautiful it is, for obvious reasons. One being that I'll get fuckin' burnt to a crisp if I touch the sun, and two being that I'm sure the sun doesn't give a damn about what I have to say about it's beauty," Dex explained humorously.

Ryder giggled and shook her head, "You're so silly!".

Dex grinned and prepared to finish his explanation. "But see, why would I want to look at that when I have a beautiful girl wrapped in my arm," Dex paused and tilted Ryder's chin up with his index finger.

Ryder's eyes widened as she took in what Dex was saying. It had been a long time since she had butterflies, but she knew that she felt something fluttering around in her stomach, and the craziest thing about it was the fact that Dex was the cause of it.

"A girl that I actually can touch," Dex spoke softly, "and I can tell her just how beautiful I think she is,". Dex smirked as he saw the instance of red rise in Ryder's cheeks.

Ryder was, for the first real time in her life, utterly speechless. Ryder coyly threw her hand over her mouth and giggled, attempting to hide her glee. She was behaving so out of character, Ryder never allowed a guy to make her feel this way. She didn't know what to say, she had never expected Dex to say something that sweet. For so long, Ryder thought her connection with Dex was merely physical, but she could see the sincerity in his eyes and hear it in his voice and it made her question her emotions.

Ryder had no idea how to respond, but lucky for her, she didn't have to. Dex smiled and gently moved Ryder's hand away from her face.

"Now, you know I'm better at demonstrations," Dex grinned, running his hand along Ryder's side.

Ryder still couldn't construct a proper sentence, her heart was beating a mile a minute. All she wanted to do was have her lips meet with his as they had done so many times earlier that day. Her wish was fulfilled as Dex pressed his lips softly against hers. This kiss wasn't like the ones they shared before. It wasn't hungry, or lust driven. It was passionate and it made Ryder shiver as Dex teased her bottom lip with his tongue. Ryder parted her lips and allowed him to enter.

Just as things were heating up, both Ryder's and Dex's phones buzzed to life, ringing in unison.

Clearly frustrated, the two abruptly pulled away from each other and pulled out their cell phones. Dex and Ryder exchanged troubled glares as they answered the calls.

"Wait, what? Robyn - slow down! I can't understand you if you're _yell-ing!_" Ryder yelled into her phone, apparently to a frantic Robyn.

"Troy... Are you sure? But how do you know? That could be any fucking body!" Dex exclaimed. Dex's expression turned bleak as Troy murmured something on the other line.

"They found Sharp," The two gasped in unison, stuffing their phones back into their pockets.

Dex and Ryder simultaneously slid off the hood of the car and turned to each other, lost for words. The mood was definitely lost. Despite the untimely interruption, the two hopped back into the car and accelerated into the night.

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_**There ya go! Don't forget to review! Chapter 10 will be up in due time :').**_


	10. Dulling the Sharp

_**** Yaaay, we're in the double-digit chapters!**Okay, so this chapter is relatively short compared to my previous ones, but I only wanted to focus on the demise of :). The next chapter will be something quite unexpected.. :D Anyways - I hope you all enjoy it! And don't be afraid to leave a comment, I don't bite... Most of the time..**_

**Disclaimer:_ I claim ownership to nothing other than my created characters, plot, and situations._**

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**Chapter 10: Dulling the Sharp**

Ryder shifted positions in her seat impatiently as Dex weaved in and and out of traffic. Dex had his elbow on the rim of the car door and a hand on his chin, while he drove with the other one. He noticed Ryder moving around out of the corner of his eye and smirked.

"You anxious?" He stated, rather than asked.

"God, yes," Ryder sighed as she laid her head back on the seat. "They're at the train station right?" Ryder asked, rolling her head towards Dex.

"Yup," Dex nodded and glanced over at Ryder. "Sharp has some fucked up timing, doesn't he?" He quipped, smirking.

Ryder looked at him lazily and chuckled, "Pft, hell yeah. Another reason to kick his ass if you ask me,"

Dex laughed and shook his head. "I have a feeling you're going to do more than just kick his ass," He snickered.

Ryder smirked and nodded curtly. "Hey, I have a feeling too," She quipped, gazing at Dex with a mischievous gleam in her eye.

Dex raised his eyebrow and grinned, "Oh?".

"Mhm," Ryder nodded, bringing her knees up to her chest. "I have a feeling that when this is all taken care of, we need to finish.. Talking about the sunset," She grinned, biting down on her lip.

"Oh, most definitely," Dex agreed, smirking devilishly.

Ryder snickered and sat up in her seat at they approached the Stilwater Transit station, which was surrounded by purple Saints vehicles.

"I'm willing to bet that they're here," Dex smirked as he parked the car amidst the other vehicles.

"Finally!" Ryder exclaimed. She quickly shimmied out of Dex's jacket and pulled out her gun.

Dex glanced at Ryder as his brow furrowed in slight confusion.

Ryder looked up and noticed Dex's look. She grinned and glanced back at his jacket lying in her seat. "I don't want to get your jacket dirty, babe," She reassured him as she lifted up the passenger side door and got out of the car.

Dex snickered and reached under his seat to get his SMG. "Ah, okay," He chuckled as he got out of the car and followed Ryder through the crowd of Saints.

"That asshole better have a pulse or somebody else is taking his place on my shit list!" Ryder bellowed as she parted the crowd, with Dex right behind her.

Dex twirled his gun one quick time around his finger as they approached the center of the chaos. Lucky for everyone, Sharp was still breathing and he was being hoisted up on a pillar that held up the train station. Johnny had his assault rifle pinned across 's neck and had been waiting for Ryder to come and finish him off.

Johnny glanced back to see Ryder and Dex arrive. "Well it's about damn time!" Johnny exclaimed.

"Haha, yeah. Gat over here was gettin' bored," Troy quipped from the bottom step of the stairway leading up to the train.

Ryder turned to Troy and grinned. "Well, then he would've just been bored as hell, because this one is _mine_," Ryder smirked, turning sharply towards Johnny.

"It won't be for long if you don't come and end this motherfucker," Gat scoffed, shoving his gun into Sharp's neck.

Ryder smirked and strolled over to . Sharp was already beaten and bruised, and he wouldn't last much longer.

"So the Barbie doll has returned to play," Sharp choked, coughing up a small amount of blood as he spoke.

Ryder crossed her arms and smirked at the beaten man before her. "You could say that," She scoffed. "But it's my turn to pick how we play the game now.. . And I'm sorry to inform that you're sorely outnumbered, and it's only fair to eliminate you.. As retribution to the lost of some... Very.. Vital players," Ryder trailed off a little and glared down at the ground and towards the ocean that sat behind the train station.

Ryder had become filled with angst at the sight and her mind trailed back to the night she lost one of best friends; at the hands of this disheveled man who was hoisted up in front of her.

Fueled with a newly awoken, unsurpassable rage, Ryder snarled, "Drop 'em,".

Johnny quirked up an eyebrow and glared at Ryder. He saw that she was still looking down at the ground, but she was tapping her thumb on the grip of her pistol idly. Gat glanced once more from Ryder's gun to her face as Ryder slowly rose her head and cocked her head at him.

Gat smirked and pulled his rifle away from Sharp's neck, causing Sharp to fall to the ground on all fours. As soon as Sharp connected with the ground, Ryder was upon him and had gave him a painful kick to the side of his face.

groaned in agony as he collapsed sideways onto the ground, bleed profusely from his mouth.

"Hurts pretty bad, doesn't it?" Ryder scoffed, forcing Sharp to roll onto his back by pushing him with her foot. "Gettin' tossed around like this... All defenseless and overwhelmed," Ryder trailed off.

"You-you've made your point," Sharp coughed achingly, "go ahead and s-sh-shoot me," he choked through the pain.

Ryder shook her head and placed a leg on both sides of Sharp so that she was towering over him and her legs formed a an upside down "V".

"That would be an act of mercy, why the hell would I grant you that?" Ryder asked. To further illustrate her point, Ryder shot him twice in his right arm; as had done to Lin.

The Saints around Ryder watched in silence and stood, looking out for any threats. Dex stood back, leaning on the staircase with Johnny, and Troy. Robyn got away from the crowd and joined them.

"She's really pissed off, isn't she?" Troy whispered, leaning towards Robyn and the guys.

Robyn glanced at him and nodded. "Ryder loves hard. You fuck with people she cares about and your ass is gonna get it - bad," She sighed, lying her head on Troy's shoulder.

"Noted," Troy chuckled softly and glanced over at Dex.

Dex nodded at Robyn's comment and watched Ryder intently. His gaze occasionally shifted from Sharp's nearly unconscious body, to the icy gleam in Ryder's eyes. Dex was beginning to notice that Ryder became so cold when it came to eliminating her targets. As attractive as that was to him, he began to wonder what caused her to be that way.

Dex shrugged off this thought as Gat leaned over to him and quipped, "Our girl's pretty dangerous when she wants to be, eh?".

Dex turned to Johnny and smirked, "Heh, I guess I had better watch my ass then,".

"Ha!" Johnny laughed as he slung his rifle onto his shoulder, "Fuckin' right, man,". Dex and Johnny sighed in amusement and returned their focus back to Ryder.

Ryder was no longer standing over . She was now squatting down by his side, staring down at his face, and muttering nearly inaudible questions.

"So, can you swim?" Ryder asked nonchalantly with her head cocked over to the side.

Sharp glared at her with a hazy gaze, he was nearing death and Ryder wanted to make her mark before that happened.

"Do you see where this is going?" Ryder asked, rising up out of her squatting position. Ryder glanced down at the purple gun in her head and then back down at Sharp. In a quick succession, she shot Sharp's left arm, and both of his kneecaps. Sharp croaked out in pain, straining himself in the process.

Ryder sneered at Sharp and glanced out towards the ocean. She sighed wistfully and shifted her gaze over to Johnny.

Knowing what she wanted him to do, Johnny smirked and shook his head in mock shame."Oh you won't let me kill the son of a bitch, but I can drag his ass to the ledge?" Johnny scoffed sarcastically and he strolled over to Ryder and Sharp.

Ryder giggled lightly and sighed, "Pretty please?".

"Yeah, yeah," Johnny teased as he clutched the back of Sharp's jacket and dragged him towards a ledge that stood over the ocean; a trail of blood followed them. Ryder followed the trail slowly as Johnny dropped the body on the ground, inches from the ledge.

Johnny stepped back and looked at Ryder as she tucked her gun into the waistline of her jeans. Ryder stopped at Sharp's unconscious body and stared at it for awhile before she got into an offensive stance and kicked his unresponsive body down into the ocean.

Ryder silently watched 's body tumble and turn down the rocky surface of the cliff and crash into the water. Dex and the others gathered around her and looked down in the water.

Dex instinctively wrapped his arm around Ryder's shoulders. Robyn came up on the opposite side of Ryder and hugged her arm. Troy was kneeled down next to Dex, snickering down at the water.

"So, who's next on the shit list?" Troy quipped, taking a drag of the cigarette that hung lazily off of his bottom lip.

"Some asshole named, Price, right?" Johnny asked, walking up aside them.

"Some asshole named, Price," Ryder nodded, confirming Johnny's assumption.

The other Saints that inundated the train station made their way to their cars and left while Ryder and the gang stared down in the water - at the small red pool that had formed where Sharp landed.

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**_Ryder's pretty cruel, eh? (: Don't forget to R&R, I really appreciate everyone who has shown Rough Ryder some love! Chapter 11 will be out before you know it!_**


	11. Salting the Wounds

_**Whew! Hey guys! ^_^ I know it's been ages since I updated, but hopefully I can make it up to you guys! My computer is out of commission right now, which is the main reason why I haven't updated. BUT I typed up this whole darn chapter on my phone in a day! Annnd, I went to the library to upload it ^_^ Because I love you guys (: Anyway.. Chapter 11!**_

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_****_**Chapter 11: Salting the Wounds  
**

_What happened to me? Am I crazy? _Ryder questioned herself. She was in the church office, alone, sitting on the desk and tapping the barrel of her pistol, down in her lap. It had been about a week since she had took out Sharp, and she had been seemingly detached from everything ever since. She hadn't spoke much to anyone. Not Robyn, not Johnny, not even Dex. Sure, she exchanged a few pleasantries when she encountered her crew members, but she didn't stay around them long enough to say much else.

Robyn made attempts to talk to her sister, nearly every time there were alone. But her attempts were very much in vain; Ryder would constantly insist that she was fine, discouraging Robyn's efforts every time.

Dex, on the other hand, didn't question Ryder about her behavior not once. Of course he noticed her change, her eyes had even been green the whole week, but he didn't say anything. The two were together practically all the time during that week and still, Ryder remained considerably silent. Whenever they were together, Ryder would just cuddle into Dex, and the couple would maintain a respectable silence. Dex didn't like to be forced into conversations, so he definitely didn't want to do that to Ryder. He just figured that she would talk when she was ready. Little did he, or anyone else for that matter, know that even if Ryder wanted to talk, she felt like she couldn't.

That whole week she had been thinking, contemplating, wondering, questioning. Thinking about her life, contemplating her past decisions, wondering what happened to her, questioning how she could take another human's life with so little remorse. Of course she was referring to her method of killing . He had not been her first kill, obviously, but the brutality that Ryder exhibited had just set into her. The reality, the raw reality, that she had taken so many lives, hit Ryder in the face like a strong, foul odor.

_Since when did I become so violent? _ Ryder thought, staring down at her lap. She began to think back to the Roller she had killed in cold blood, the Roller she held accountable for everything she has gone through, all the loses, tears, and pain. She had been so cruel.

_Sure he hurt me, but doesn't everybody deserve mercy? _She had been so cruel, and she had smiled about it when it was over.

_Why did I feel so good about taking his life away? Was it revenge? No, it tasted sweeter than simple revenge. Wait, what am I saying? Am I crazy? _ Ryder then began to think all the way back to her canonization. She already knew she could fight, but she had mustered up so much anger and unleashed it so easily. It was like it was waiting to erupt.

_Why am I so damn angry? What's wrong with me? _Ryder had started questioning her sanity.

"Dex, what's wrong with me?" Ryder asked aloud, not looking up from her lap. While she had been thinking earlier, Dex had entered the office and was standing aside her with his arms crossed. He could tell she was in deep thought and didn't want to disturb her.

"I didn't think there was anything wrong with you," Dex replied, his voice low. Dex gently grabbed one of Ryder's hands and stood in front of her, partly between her now separated legs.

Ryder sighed a little and stroked Dex's hand with her thumb.

"Watchu' thinkin' about, Ry?" Dex asked softly, taking Ryder's gun out of her lap and placing it on the desk. He stepped closer to Ryder, closing some of the distance between them.

Ryder lifted her head hesitantly and tilted her head at Dex. "Am I crazy?" She asked softly, her voice was barely audible.

Dex didn't seemed phased by her question, he just raised her hand to his lips, and kissed it softly.

"No," He responded tersely, shaking his head.

Ryder met Dex's gaze, her eyes filled with doubt, "I feel crazy," she stated.

"Why do you feel crazy? Talk to me, baby," Dex pleaded, softly. His voice was still low, and very soothing, it made Ryder want to find the words to describe how she was feeling. And it was rare that Dex called her by typical pet names like baby or sweetie. He only threw them out when he was particularly sincere about something.

"I don't know," Ryder started, looking away from Dex, "I just feel so angry,".

"Well, that's understandable," Dex reasoned, lifting Ryder's chin up with his index finger.

Ryder bit her bottom lip and shook her head, trying to sort out her feelings. It became increasingly more difficult when Dex slipped his arms around her midriff and pulled her a little closer to the edge of the desk, further sealing the space between them. Ryder's midriff was exposed and as she felt Dex's warm embrace around her, it sent slight chills up her back and made it harder for her to concentrate.

Ryder had on Dex's denim jacket still, she had secretly claimed it as being hers now. But beneath the opened jacket, she donned a purple crop top and had a silver chain with Fleur de Saints charms adorning it around her center. She also had on a simple pair of faded blue jeans that matched her jacket, with a pair of Timberland boots.

Ryder tried to shake the sensation she felt away as she continued to explain herself. She didn't know if he did it on purpose, although she was almost sure he didn't, but Dex had a way about him. Whenever she felt bad about anything, it was like Dex had a sixth sense - he knew exactly what to do to take her mind off of things.

"No, it's not understandable... I feel so angry and I don't know why..." Ryder trailed off a bit and glanced up at Dex. "I don't think it's recent anger either, babe,".

Dex was especially attentive now. He cocked his head to the side a little and furrowed his brow. "If it's not recent, then where could it be from?" He asked.

Ryder hadn't considered the possibility that her anger could be from something in her past. She didn't want to consider it either. Ryder hated dwelling on the past, it never produced any good results.

"I don't even want to think about it anymore," Ryder sighed. She then proceeded to wrap her arms around Dex's center and laid her head on his chest.

"I see you've been thinking about it a lot," Dex chuckled slightly, rubbing Ryder's back. He could feel Ryder nod her head against his chest and he grinned slightly, and kissed the top of her head.

Ryder pulled back a little and gazed at Dex.

"Yeess?" Dex sung, he could tell Ryder was thinking again.

Ryder clutched Dex's shirt a little as she smiled up at him. Dex kept his attire simple, as usual. He had on a white t-shirt that had a purple letter D spray painted on the front, his gold chain, dark jeans, and purple canvas sneakers. Of course, he still had his purple visor.

"Dex, did you know that you make me happy? Like really happy?" Ryder asked, her eyes beaming.

Dex smiled and snickered, "What kinda happy are we talking about? I need to know before I say it back,".

Ryder gasped and playfully slapped Dex's chest. "You know what type of happy I mean!" She exclaimed.

"Horny happy? Because you make me horny happy too!" Dex laughed, raising an eyebrow.

Ryder threw her head back and laughed, "Noo, not that happy!".

"So I don't make you horny happy? Bullshit," Dex scoffed, seemingly offended.

"No! I mean, you do - but that wasn't what I was referring to!" Ryder explained, trying to save face.

Dex laughed and hugged Ryder tight, "I know, Ry. I was just kidding," he assured her. Dex pulled back and looked at Ryder, "You make me happy too, sooo fuckin' happy.." Dex sighed.

"What kinda happy?" Ryder teased, unwrapping her arms from around Dex and resting her elbows back on the desk.

"Both kinds," Dex answered, biting down on his bottom lip and leaning over the desk on top of Ryder, now with his arms on either side of her.

Ryder giggled and hiked both of her legs up and around Dex's waist, pushing him forward a bit. Dex began sprinkling Ryder with kisses, up and down her neck, lowering her all the way down on the desk and positioning himself firmly on top of her.

Ryder wrapped her arms loosely around Dex's neck and threw her head back in pleasure, soft moans escaping her mouth as Dex made his way up to Ryder's lips. As their lips touched, however, both Dex and Ryder broke away from each other as footsteps could be heard entering the church; Saints were arriving from a stronghold takeover.

"Shit," Dex hissed, gazing down at a giggling Ryder. "They can't be serious, tell me they're not serious,".

"I'm pretty sure they're serious, Dexter," Ryder grinned, tracing Dex's bottom lip with her index finger, they were merely centimeters apart.

Dex grinned as he gave Ryder a quick peck on the lips and lifted himself off the desk.

"That's the second time," He snickered, "the second time these assholes interrupted,".

Ryder laughed and hopped off the desk. "Than that's just one more thing we need to make sure we continue, eh? That just made that night, whenever it is, twice as long," Ryder smiled as she caressed Dex's jaw line, winked at him and sauntered out of the office.

Dex licked his lips and grinned, "A lost turns into a win-win? What a beautiful situation,".

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_**Guys, when I was M.I.A., I was actually writing some other stories for another site I'm on, and frankly, I think my writing has improved soooo much! Tell me, eh? Please excuse the shortness! Until next time mi amors (:**_


	12. An Announcement This is not a chapter

As the title states, this is not a chapter, but an announcement. I haven't updated this story in such a long time and honestly, I don't think I'm coming back to it anytime soon. As I've stated before, I'm more interested in other writing endeavors I'm involved in elsewhere, and this site constantly slips my mind… At times I completely forget about it. This story was initially planned out to be a part of a trilogy of stories, and it potentially still could be, but I would feel bad if I had you guys waiting months on end for a measly update. So, with that said, I'm seriously contemplating taking "Rough Ryder" off this site completely and just reposting it when I'm serious about it again. That's all I have to say… I thought it was only fair to tell you guys first before I make a decision.


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